ANTONIO RUDIGER has been hit with a six-match ban for launching an object at the referee – but Jude Bellingham has had his red card rescinded.
Real Madrid imploded and had three players sent off in Saturday night’s 3-2 Copa del Rey final defeat to El Clasico rivals Barcelona.
Antonio Rudiger launched an ice pack at the referee[/caption]
A fuming Rudiger had to be held back from confronting the ref[/caption]
Jude Bellingham has seen his red overturned[/caption]
Real Madrid were unhappy with the appointment of Ricardo De Burgos Bengoetxea before the game[/caption]
There were shocking scenes at the of the match after Kylian Mbappe was judged to have fouled Eric Garcia as Real Madrid staged a last attack.
Tempers flared as the bench behind boss Carlo Ancelotti lost their cool and wildly protested.
Rudiger, who had been subbed off, was the most incensed and he launched an ice pack at referee Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea.
The ex-Chelsea centre-back then had to be restrained from confronting the official.
Meanwhile, Vinicius Junior, Lucas Vazquez and several coaches charged onto the pitch and gestured angrily towards the official.
Rudiger and Vazquez were sent off at the time, with Bellingham also seeing red after the final whistle.
The official’s report said the English midfielder “approached the referee aggressively” and needed “to be restrained by team-mates”.
Rudiger has been slapped with a six-game ban as punishment and Vazquez will be suspended for two.
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However, Bellingham has been let off after Real Madrid‘s appeal was successful.
They reportedly had video evidence that proved he was not “aggressive” to the ref.
Real Madrid were unhappy with the appointment of De Burgos Bengoetxea before the game, taking to their club TV channel to broadcast mistakes made by him and express that he was too inexperienced for a final.
It led to the ref breaking down in tears in a pre-match press conference, saying: “When a child of yours goes to school and there are kids telling him that his father is a ‘thief’ and comes home crying, it’s totally messed up.
“What I do is try to educate my son, to say that his father is honest, above all honest, who can make mistakes, like any sportsperson.
It’s not right what we are going through, many colleagues, and not just in professional football, but also at grassroots level.
“Everyone should reflect about where we want to go, about what we want from sport and from football.”