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The Brazilian hit Dimitrievski in the neck after reacting to an earlier incident by the Macedonian goalkeeper.
The sparks ignited in the 76th minute at Mestalla against Valencia. Vinícius Júnior, under relentless defensive pressure from Valencia’s Carlos Corberán, fell to his knees on the grass, appealing for a penalty to referee Soto Grado.
At that moment, Stole Dimitrievskiwho was already on a yellow card, contacted Vinícius from behind, disagreeing with the penalty claim. Dimitrievski appeared to touch the Brazilian’s back and probably pulling lightly on his hair.
Respond impulsively, Vinícius tried to push Dimitrievski but unintentionally he hit the Macedonian goalkeeper on his neck.
“That’s a red card because he hit him in the face. A push to the chest would warrant a yellow card unless it was a punch, but the face is untouchable according to the rules,” explained Eduardo Iturralde González, former international referee and analyst for MP on Cadena SER Sports Carousel.
After reviewing the incident on the pitchside monitor, Soto Grado showed Vinícius a straight red card, marking the Brazilian’s first dismissal in seven years of La Liga play. After seeing the card, Vinícius stood up and charged towards the referee, demanding that his teammates, Rüdiger and Ceballos, stop him and escort him off the field amid heightened tension and emotion.
A suspension of two to four games is on the horizon
Vinícius now faces a a possible suspension of up to four gamesdepending on the referee’s official report. If the incident is classified as aggressive behavior under Article 103 of the RFEF Disciplinary Code, the ban would extend to four gamesto be served consecutively.
This would include games against Mining Sports (Monday, 7:00pm), the two Spanish Super Cup games (starting with the semi-final against Mallorca on Thursday night at 8:00pm), and the the next round of the Copa del Reyhas provided Real Madrid’s advances in both competitions.
“As a precedent, in a recent match at Leganés-Villarreal, Óscar Rodríguez received a four-game suspension for violent behavior in a situation where the game was suspended,” Iturralde noted. If the action is deemed to be less serious, the suspension would vary between two and three games.
Vinícius’ First Red Card at the Top Level
This marks Vinícius’ first ever red card in top flight football. He previously received a red card during his short spell with Real Madrid Castilla in a match against Celta B, where referee Alexander González penalized him for foul imitation after he had already been booked.
Even before he moved to Spain, Vinícius maintained a solid disciplinary record during his 69 appearances with Flamengocollecting nine yellow cards but no dismissals. Likewise, he has has never been sent off while playing for Brazil at any level, from youth teams to the senior squad, where he has accumulated six yellow cards in total.
