On This Day: Suarez banned for biting opponent; Gerrard announced retirement

Hi all, welcome to All Football's On This Day! Let's find out what happened today (November 24th) in football history. If you have more stories and news that happened on this day in history, please post them in the comment area and share them with AFers!

On this day in 2010 - Suarez received a 7-match ban for biting

On 24 November 2010, Ajax striker Luis Suárez received a seven-match ban for biting PSV's Otman Bakkal.

After an impressive 2009-10 season in which he scored 49 goals for Ajax in 48 appearances across all competitions, Suárez was off to another strong start in the 2010-11 season when third-place Ajax hosted league leaders PSV Eindhoven on 20 November. In stoppage time, with the match headed to a scoreless draw, Suárez battled with Bakkal and bit the midfielder on the shoulder.

The referee did not see the incident, but post-match analysis prompted Ajax to suspend Suárez for two matches and fined him an undisclosed amount. Not satisfied with that punishment, the Dutch Football Federation stepped in on 24 November and issued a seven-match ban of their own, which Suárez did not protest.

As it turned out, he never made another appearance for Ajax. In January 2011, while still under suspension, he moved to Liverpool for £22.8 million. He did not leave controversy behind, however, as he has since been involved in another biting incident as well as being found guilty of racially abusing Manchester United's Patrice Evra.

But he didn't learn his lesson, after that, he bit his opponents secondly and thirdly:

In 2013, while Suarez was playing for Liverpool, he was suspended for 10 games for biting Chelsea's Ivanovic on the arm.

In the 2014 World Cup, he bit Italy's Giorgio Chiellini. He was not punished during the game. After the match, he was ultimately banned for nine games and sent home from the tournament.

On this day 2016 - Steven Gerrard announced the end of his career

Steven Gerrard, the former Liverpool and England captain, confirmed his retirement as a footballer: 

• 748 club games

• 212 total goals

• 114 caps

• 9 trophies

The only player to score in a League Cup final, FA Cup final, UEFA Cup final and Champions League final.

He made the announcement on social media that day: 

"I have had an incredible career and am thankful for each and every moment of my time at Liverpool, England and LA Galaxy.

"As a teenager, I fulfilled my childhood dream by pulling on the famous red shirt of Liverpool, and when I made my debut against Blackburn Rovers in November 1998 I could never have imagined what would then follow over the next 18 years. I feel lucky to have experienced so many wonderful highlights over the course of my career. I am proud to have played over 700 games for Liverpool, many of which as captain, and to have played my part in helping the club to bring major honours back to Anfield, none more so than that famous night in Istanbul.

"I am excited about the future and feel I have a lot to offer the game"

After retiring from playing football, Gerrard became a coach in the Liverpool youth academy and managed their under-18 team during the 2017–18 season, before becoming manager of Scottish Premiership club Rangers ahead of the 2018–19 season.

On this day in 2008 - Fabregas got his 1st captaincy in Arsenal

On 24 November 2008, Arsenal made Cesc Fabregas their captain, replacing defender William Gallas.

Gallas, a centre-back who joined the Gunners from Chelsea in September 2006, had held the captaincy for just over a year, but it was a year shadowed by controversy. In particular, he drew fierce criticism from supporters and commentators alike for losing his composure in a 2-2 draw at Birmingham City in February 2008--the same match in which teammate Eduardo suffered a broken leg.

The situation grew dimmer for the French international in the 2008-09 season as, fourteen games into the season, Arsenal had lost three of their last four to drop into 5th place. After the third loss, a 3-0 drubbing at the hands of Manchester City, manager Arsène Wenger announced that the 21-year old Fabregas would permanently replace Gallas.

The switch sparked rumours that Wenger had given the armband to Fabregas in attempt to keep him out of the clutches of Barcelona, who were engaged in a highly public pursuit of the Spanish international midfielder (who began his career in the Barça youth academy). Whatever the reason, it yielded immediate results as Arsenal beat Chelsea 2-1 in Fabregas' first match as captain.

Injuries limited Fabregas' time on the pitch, however, and Arsenal limped to a fourth-place finish in 2009 and a third-place finish in 2010. In the summer of 2011, Fabregas finally made the switch to his Barcelona for a transfer fee of £29 million plus incentives.

On this day in 1979 - George Best Comes Back To Britain

On 24 November 1979, George Best returned to the UK from his American exile to play briefly for Hibernian and scored on his debut.

He became one of the most famous footballers in the world while playing for Manchester United, winning, among other things, the 1968 Ballon d'Or. But his inability to resist women and alcohol caused problems for him at Old Trafford, resulting in a series of retirements from the club, the last of which came in January 1974.

Afterwards, he turned out for a handful of clubs, including Stockport County (1975) and Cork Celtic (1975-76), before splitting time between the Los Angeles Aztecs and Fulham from 1976 to 1978. When he left Fulham in 1978, he remained in the US, playing for LA and the Fort Lauderdale Strikers.

But in the fall of 1979, Hibernian manager Tom Hart lured Best back to Britain. At the time, Hibs were at the bottom of the Scottish First Division table and were lucky to draw 5,000 people to a match. Hart figured correctly that Best, despite having lost much of his ability, was still a big enough name to bring in the crowds and agreed to pay him £2,500 per match at a time when most of the team's other players were making less than a tenth of that amount. 

Best's first appearance, though, was in an away match against St. Mirren, where a crowd of 13,798 watched him score the visitors' only goal in a 2-1 result. In his home debut the following week, more than 20,000 filled the stands. He didn't score but helped Hibs claim their first win since August. It was only a brief respite, as they were relegated at the end of the season.

He played only 17 games for Hibernian across two seasons, scoring a total of three goals, before returning to the US to play for the San Jose Earthquakes. He continued to move around over the next few years before his final retirement in 1984 but never played professionally in the UK again.

On this day in 1874 - Brazil's Prometheus Unbound

On 24 November 1874, Charles William Miller, the man who introduced football to Brazil, was born in São Paulo, Brazil to a Scottish father and a Brazilian mother.

In 1884, like many children in Brazil's British community, Miller was sent by his parents to England for his education. He enrolled in a public school on the outskirts of Southampton, England, where he was introduced to football. While overseas, he played for Corinthian FC in London and St. Mary's, the forerunner of Southampton FC.

He returned to Brazil in 1894 with a football and a set of rules and set about organizing matches among the British expatriates. He was one of the founding members of São Paulo AC and also helped organize Brazil's first football league. With Miller at striker, São Paulo won the first three league championships (1902, 1903, 1904).

A few short years after Miller's return from England, football had become Brazil's most popular sport.