A bloodbath that could be expensive. This Friday, January 3, Brazilian international Vinicius Junior was sent off for a gesture of humor towards Valencia goalkeeper Stole Dimitrievski. His 4th career red card, the first since the 2022/2023 season, but not the most trivial. Indeed, the referee of the match, Mr Soto Grado, did not establish a match report to aggravate or attenuate Vinicius’ action. In the absence of this report, the penalty that will be applied will be a four-match suspension for “an attack on another, without causing injury, considering the malicious element as the determining factor”.
A sanction that would cause him to miss the next Copa del Rey match, as well as the entire Spanish Super Cup, starting with the semi-final against Mallorca. In the event of qualification for the Cup, Vinicius will also be deprived of the round of 16 which would follow immediately after the Super Cup. Otherwise, his final match suspension would be applied when Las Palmas hosts in La Liga. Carlo Ancelotti will therefore have to cope without his star winger for a good part of the month of January, or even longer after reading article 104 of the RFEF Disciplinary Code which specifies that such aggression can be punished by a suspension of 4 to… 12 matches!
