The Spanish Football Federation have handed down punishments to Antonio Rudiger and Lucas Vazquez following their late red cards in the Copa del Rey final defeat to Barcelona on Saturday.
Real Madrid were beaten 3-2 after extra time by their bitter rivals, after Jules Kounde netted a stunning winner in the 116th minute, keeping their hopes of the treble alive, and potentially condemning Carlo Ancelotti‘s men to a trophyless season.
Tensions boiled over after the Barca winner, as Rudiger and Vazquez were sent off before referee Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea also dismissed Jude Bellingham following the final whistle.
Rudiger was pictured launching a missile in the direction of the referee and was instantly shown a red card, despite being subbed off a few minutes earlier, and the German had to be restrained and held back from approaching the match official.
Vazquez was given his marching orders for entering the field of play to protest the same decision after also being withdrawn, while Bellingham was dismissed for allegedly approaching the referee in an aggressive manner.
RFEF come down hard on Rudiger
Rudiger, who has since been ruled out for the rest of the campaign anyway after undergoing knee surgery, has been slapped with a six-match suspension, which will also carry over into next season.
Los Blancos only have five domestic matches remaining this season, so the German will be missing for the opening game of the following campaign, assuming he recovers from recent surgery in time, with the current prognosis suggesting he will miss two months of action.
Rudiger expressed his regret for the incident, which has drawn widespread criticism for the angry nature of his protests, in a statement made after the match.
The club attempted to use Rudiger’s grovelling post-match apology as means for a more lenient ban, but these claims were rejected by the RFEF, who handed down a severe punishment.
Vazquez punished, Bellingham handed reprieve
Vazquez and Bellingham’s actions were deemed much less serious, and the English midfielder has avoided punishment altogether, with his red card being rescinded by the disciplinary committee.
A “different reality” was found to have occurred compared to what was included in the referee’s report regarding Bellingham’s sending off, leading to the decision to have his ban overturned.
However, there was no such luck for captain Vazquez, who was handed a two-game ban for entering the field of play after being substituted.
That will see the right-back miss the home encounter against Celta Vigo on Sunday, as well as another showdown with Barcelona a week later, which looks likely to be a title decider in Montjuic.
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