Cristiano Ronaldo (C) celebrates his goal by taking off his shirt which resulted in his first yellow card against Barcelona in Camp Nou on August 13, 2017. BAGU BLANCO/SHUTTERSTOCK
Cristiano Ronaldo scored a sensational goal and was then sent off for a combination of his provocative celebration and for diving as Real Madrid beat Barcelona 3-1 in an explosive Spanish Super Cup first leg.
Gerard Piqué scored an own goal early in the second half to give Real the lead in the annual curtain raiser between La Liga champion and the Copa del Rey holder although Lionel Messi looked to have saved his blushes by scoring a controversial penalty in the 77th minute after Luis Suárez was fouled, the Guardian reported.
Ronaldo, a substitute, rattled in a wonderful goal from outside the area three minutes later to restore European champion’s advantage, earning a booking for removing his shirt and also mimicking Messi’s celebration at the Santiago Bernabéu in last April’s Clasico.
Ronaldo was given a second yellow card moments later for diving to attempt to win a penalty and he will miss Wednesday’s second leg at the Bernabéu. Far from letting Barcelona back in, the Spain forward Marco Asensio then extended Madrid’s advantage with a scorching shot from outside the area in the 90th minute.
Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane was delighted with his team’s performance by also annoyed by some refereeing decisions after the game.
"We played a great game but I am annoyed by Cristiano's sending off," Zidane told a news conference.
"Perhaps it wasn't a penalty but the red card is a little harsh. We can't change it, but we'll try and make sure he plays on Wednesday."
It was also not the kind of debut Barcelona new boss Ernesto Valverde was looking for.
"I don't have the sensation we were as far away from them as the scoreline suggests. They scored three times, but we played well and had our chances," Valverde said after his first defeat as the Barca manager.
"They caught us on the counterattack when it was 1-1 and scored a great goal, and then another one. But it's not just about getting into the danger zone - it's about putting your chances away."
Ronaldo hit with five-game ban
Later on Monday, Ronaldo was hit with a five-game ban which means the Real Madrid star will miss the second leg of the Spanish Super Cup against Barcelona and the first four games of new La Liga season.
He reacted by pushing referee Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea after he picked up a second yellow card for diving and was then sent off, Eurosport reported.
The referee included the incident in his report, writing, “Once the red card was shown, the player pushed me slightly in a sign of disagreement.”
Article 96 of the Spanish league’s rules and regulations says such behaviour should be punished with a ban of between four and 12 matches.
Ronaldo was treated as leniently as possible but on top of the one-game ban for the red card which he will serve against Barca, Ronaldo will now also miss the Liga games against Deportivo La Coruna, Valencia, Levante and Real Sociedad as a result.