UEFA is seriously aiming to punish footballers who try to "cheat" yellow card penalties.
In yesterday's match between Madrid's "Real" and Nicosia's APOEL, defender Dani Carvajal received a particularly strange yellow card, which now forces him to miss the last group stage match against Dortmund's "Borussia."
The incident occurred in the 90th minute, when "Real" already had a crushing lead - leading 6-0. D. Carvajal was standing on the sideline to throw in the ball, but hesitated for a long time and soon received a yellow card for time-wasting.
This yellow card was supposed to help D. Carvajal avoid the possibility of missing one of the knockout stage matches, but "Real" without the Spaniard could now be forced to play not one, but two matches.
UEFA released a statement claiming that the defender violated Article 15 of the European Football Discipline and Ethics Code, specifically earning a yellow card.
UEFA has initiated an investigation, which should last until December 7th. If D. Carvajal is found to have received the yellow card with the intention of avoiding punishment in the later stages, he will face a stricter sanction - the Spaniard may potentially miss even the first knockout stage match.
Similar incidents of footballers' deception may please online betting enthusiasts who closely follow possible card distributions in matches in order to place bets.
The episode in which D. Carvajal received a yellow card:
