RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil -- After a few days of reflection, Luis Suarez acknowledged what millions saw on TV -- he did bite an opponent during a game at the World Cup. Paul Pierce Jersey . In addition, he said hes sorry about it, and promised it will never happen again. Ending a unified protest in Uruguay by everyone from Suarez to teammates, fans and even the countrys president that the star striker had done nothing wrong, the Liverpool player on Monday offered an apology to Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini. "I deeply regret what occurred," Suarez said in a statement posted on Twitter. "I apologize to Giorgio Chiellini and the entire football family. ... I vow to the public that there will never again be another incident like (this)." The Uruguay striker was banned for four months from all football by FIFA for biting the shoulder of Chiellini during the teams 1-0 win over Italy in their group-stage game in Brazil. The incident was not spotted by the referee, and the Uruguayans victory sent them through to the second round while Italy was eliminated. It is the third time Suarez has been banned for biting an opponent, after similar incidents at both Ajax in the Dutch league and Liverpool in the English Premier League. Chiellini responded on Twitter shortly after Suarez posted his statement, accepting the apology. "Its all forgotten," the Italian wrote in English. "I hope FIFA will reduce your suspension." Suarez had originally denied wrongdoing in a written response to FIFA, and had been staunchly defended by teammates and Uruguayan officials. His apology could be taken into account by FIFA when it considers an appeal of the ban, which the Uruguayan federation has said it will file. "After several days of being home with my family, I have had the opportunity to regain my calm and reflect about the reality of what occurred during the Italy-Uruguay match," the statement said. "(The) truth is that my colleague Giorgio Chiellini suffered the physical result of a bite in the collision he suffered with me." Suarez was also suspended from Uruguays next nine international matches -- the first of which was a 2-0 loss to Colombia in the round of 16 on Saturday. Suarez had already returned home to Uruguay by then, and has received an outpouring of support from Uruguayan fans and even the countrys president, who blasted FIFA over the ban. President Jose Mujica referred to FIFA as "bunch of old sons of whores" as he welcomed Uruguays team back from the World Cup on Sunday. He also referred to FIFAs stiff ban as "fascist," though he said that Suarez could have been sanctioned with a lesser sentence. Suarez was named the player of the year in the Premier League this past season after scoring 31 goals to lead Liverpool to a second-place finish. He led the league in scoring despite missing the first five games of the season for serving the last part of a 10-game ban for biting Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic during the previous campaign. Liverpool has yet to comment on the World Cup biting incident. Danny Ainge Celtics Jersey . -- Derek Jeter says the New York Yankees have no choice but to move forward now that Alex Rodriguez has accepted his suspension for the 2014 season. Kevin Mchale Celtics Jersey . Juventus announced details of the deal Saturday, saying that Morata signed a five-year contract with the club. The deal also includes an option for Madrid to buy Morata back for up to (euro)30 million ($40. http://www.authenticcelticsproshop.com/Red-Auerbach-Jersey/ . Kamloops, B.C., the host city of this years Tim Hortons Brier, is where he won his first Canadian mens curling crown in 1996.Dayton, OH (SportsNetwork.com) - Dyshawn Pierre scored 21 points and 22nd- ranked Dayton survived a challenge from Richmond to earn a 63-60 victory in an Atlantic 10 clash. Kendall Pollard added 14 points, including a clutch hook shot with 2:16 remaining that snapped a 55-55 tie. Dayton (16-3, 6-1 A-10) stayed in front the rest of the way to avoid a second straight conference loss and extend its home win sttreak to 16 games. Marcus Smart Celtics Jersey. Richmond (10-9, 3-3) was able to overcome a 35-25 halftime deficit to hold a slim lead with three minutes left, but couldnt hold it down the stretch en route to a 10th consecutive road defeat. T.J. Cline netted 10 of his 14 points in the second half for the Spiders, with Terry Allen, ShawnDre Jones and Alonzo Nelson-Ododa each finishing with 11 points in the loss. ' ' '