(CNN) -- A defiant Sepp Blatter shrugged off allegations of corruption within FIFA Monday and said he would press ahead with his bid to be re-elected as president of football's world governing body for the fourth time.
Blatter will be the sole candidate in Wednesday's election in Zurich after Qatari Mohamed Bin Hammam, the only person standing against him, was suspended by the FIFA ethics committee Sunday, along with fellow leading official Jack Warner.
"We are not in a crisis, we are only in some difficulties and these can be solved inside our family," Blatter told a press conference Monday where he was continually pressed on both his own position and wider allegations of wrongdoing within FIFA.
"FIFA is strong enough to deal with our own problems," he asserted when asked if he had considered postponing Wednesday's vote by the 207-member FIFA Congress.
Was Blatter right to be defiant?
Blatter also ruled out a new vote on the venue for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
"There is no issue for the World Cup in 2022," the 75-year-old Swiss said.
"I believe that the decision taken for the World Cup in 2022 was done exactly in the same pattern and in the same way as the 2018 tournament."
Bin Hamman, who led the Qatar bid, said earlier Monday that he would appeal his suspension.
"I am punished before I am found guilty," Bin Hammam said in a statement, saying he would "not accept" the decision.
Blatter, who was cleared by the ethics committee, did admit that the whole affair had affected FIFA's reputation.
"What has happened in the last few days and weeks. It has done great damage to the image of FIFA," he said.This post was made using the Auto Blogging Software from WebMagnates.org This line will not appear when posts are made after activating the software to full version.
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