Cristiano Ronaldo Banned Five Games After Pushing Referee In Real Madrid Win Vs. Barcelona

Cristiano Ronaldo has landed himself in hot water again: the Portuguese forward has been handed a five-game suspension after receiving two yellow cards and shoving a referee in the back at Camp Nou on Sunday.

Cristiano Ronaldo suspension news

Ronaldo, 32, was given a red card after being introduced as a second-half substitute during Real Madrid’s 3-1 road victory over Barcelona in the first leg of the Supercopa of champions. The four-time Ballon d’Or winner — who recently appeared in a Spanish court following allegations of tax evasion — played for just 24 minutes but managed to give his team a 2-1 lead by scoring in the 80th minute. Ronaldo took off his shirt to celebrate and was issued his first yellow card of the game.

Three minutes after his goal, the forward was given another yellow card and sent off for diving in the box to try to win a penalty after competing with Barcelona defender Samuel Umtiti to chase a ball. Ronaldo protested but was unable to convince referee Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea that he had done nothing wrong, and he retaliated by pushing Begoetxea in the back, a move that raised his suspension from one game to five games.

“Once shown the red card, said player (Ronaldo) pushed me lightly as a sign of his disapproval,” Bengoetxea wrote in his post-match report.

It marked Ronaldo’s tenth red card of his career. The Portuguese forward has ten days to appeal his ban, which means he will miss the second leg of the Spanish Super Cup against Barcelona on Aug. 17 as well as Madrid’s four opening La Liga games against Deportivo La Coruna, Valencia, Levante and Real Sociedad.

Ronaldo will thus return to play on Sept. 20, when Los Blancos host Real Betis. According to ESPN FC, he will be eligible to play in Real Madrid’s Champions League group stage opener a week before and the Santiago Bernabeu Trophy friendly against Fiorentina on Aug. 23.

Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane said following the game that he believed the punishment Ronaldo received was too strict.

“Ronaldo’s sending-off annoys me because even if it is not a penalty, the card is harsh,” said Zidane. “We will see if we can do something so that he is available on Wednesday.”

Ronaldo has also been fined €3,805 ($4,481) for his actions, while Madrid were fined €1,750 ($2,061).

BARCELONA, SPAIN – AUGUST 13: Cristiano Ronaldo of Real Madrid reacts during the Supercopa de Espana Supercopa Final 1st Leg match between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid at Camp Nou on August 13, 2017 in Barcelona, Spain. (Photo by Manuel Queimadelos Alonso/Getty Images,)