NYON: Footballers who deliberately set out to get a second yellow card in order to give them a clean slate for later in a competition will now receive a two-match ban, UEFA secretary general Gianni Infantino said on Friday.
“Usually this type of behaviour is penalised by a fine but now there will be a match ban in addition to that given automatically for the accumulation of two yellow cards,” said Infantino.
Barcelona's Andres Iniesta was accused of deliberately setting out to get a yellow card during the Spanish club's 5-1 Champions League quarter-final first leg match against Shakhtar Donetsk at the Camp Nou, meaning he missed the return leg but had a disciplinary clean slate for the April 27 semi-final match against arch-rivals Real.
UEFA match officials had proposed suspending Iniesta for an extra match for allegedly incurring the yellow card deliberately, but dismissed the call for the extra match suspension or even a fine for the midfielder.
In similar cases UEFA fined Spanish club Villarreal 60,000 euros and striker Nilmar and midfielder Santiago Cazorla 20,000 euros for yellow cards incurred at the end of the Europa League quarter-final away leg at Twente (5-1).
Suspended for the return leg they were then free to play in the semi-final away leg at Porto on April 28 without risking a new yellow card.
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