Tearful Vidal apologizes for car crash

Chile' s star Arturo Vidal apologized tearfully for the car crash happened on Tuesday night after drunk driving, but the Juventus midfielder was given the permission to continue his play at the on-going Copa America.

Vidal scored twice in Chile' s 3-3 draw with Mexico at the Copa America on Monday. A free Tuesday afternoon was given to the Chilean squad, Vidal and his wife went to a casino in the south of Santiago but on their way back to the capital, he crashed his Ferrari while driving under the influence of alcohol. A Chevrolet and a white car were also invloved in the accident.

A photo showed that the left side of Ferrari was badly damaged after the crash. Though Vidal only suffered minor injuries in the crash, as did his wife, he was held overnight in a local jail. The court said Vidal showed 1.21 grams of alcohol in his blood per liter and a judge on Wednesday gave a four-month driving ban towards Vidal.

"I went to the casino and took two drinks, then I had the accident, putting at risk the lives of many people, including my wife. I'm very sorry about it," said a tearful Vidal at a brief press conference on Wednesday.

I am ashamed of what happened. Sorry to the people who were involved in this accident. It was my fault, sorry for everybody. I'll try to give my best to be a champion."

Chile national team coach Jorge Sampaoli says Vidal can continue to play for Chile, which is among the favourites at the Copa America. After two rounds of group match, Chile tops Group A with four points. Endi