Suarez says he's trying to control himself more

MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay (AP) Uruguay striker Luis Suarez said Wednesday that he's still obsessed about winning, but he's focusing on avoiding the kind of mistakes that could get him into trouble.

Suarez has made a promising return to football with his new club Barcelona, following a four-month ban from competitive matches for biting an Italian opponent at the World Cup.

''I'm trying to be the same on the pitch, but without making mistakes,'' Suarez told a news conference in Montevideo.

''No one's going to take away my desire to win, to triumph, but I'm trying to be a bit more intelligent and to take a breath - not only before making those mistakes, but also before arguing, insulting, everything...''

Uruguay has two upcoming friendly matches, against Costa Rica on Nov. 13 in Montevideo and Chile on Nov. 18 in Santiago. Though eligible for these games, Suarez is banned from Uruguay's next eight competitive matches and will miss next year's Copa America and some World Cup qualifiers.

Suarez declined to talk about his international ban and whether he hoped it will be reduced.

''If I talk about it, I'd probably say some silliness,'' he said. ''I'd rather take the eight-match sanction, just as I did with the four-month suspension.''