Eight red cards this weekend as tempers frayed in the penultimate round of games of the season. Four of them came in one match between Levante and Valencia, and although there was actually little at stake, the fact that this was a city derby was enough to incite the players. Cañizares was the first to go after giving away a penalty on Salva in only the tenth minute, and although numbers were evened up temporarily when Kapo was sent off for a second bookable offence on the stroke of half time, the visitors were soon down to eight men after Ayala got his marching orders for a high tackle and then Marchena followed for a second booking.

Racing also had nothing to play for, but they had two players, Felipe Melo and Vitolo, sent off for insulting the referee after he awarded a late penalty to their hosts Real Sociedad. Savio missed the kick though, so they needn't have bothered! Atlético's Luccin, a past winner of our "Villains" award, is virtually assured of the runners-up spot this season after getting himself sent off for kicking a Celta player midway through the second half of their match, an act which earned him a two match ban pending appeal. And finally Sevilla's Dragutinovic was sent for an early bath near the end of the game at Mallorca for a second bookable offence.

Drago will be joined on the sidelines for the last (league) match of the season by his fellow defender Javi Navarro, who was one of twelve players to complete the five yellow card cycle (in his case for the second time). Also banned will be Pablo (Atlético), Miguel Angel (Betis), Baiano (Celta), Casquero and Cotelo (Getafe), Camacho (Levante), Ibagaza (Mallorca), Cristian Fernández (Racing), Helguera (Real Madrid), Joaquín (Valencia) and Sergio (Zaragoza). With so much at stake though the appeals committee will have a lot of work this week (as will FIFA for players called up by their national squads), as nobody with anything to play for wants to lose their key players at this stage of the season. (12.06.07)