Five red cards in the midweek cup matches, including one for second division Hércules full back Dani Bautista before the break in their tie against Valladolid. Recreativo striker Ersen Martin was sent off early in the second half for elbowing an opponent at Bilbao, and his team mate Aitor was also shown a straight red for protesting whilst still on the subs' bench (although the disciplinary committee later downgraded that to yellow). Racing's Valera was also given his marching orders for a high tackle three minutes from the end of the game at Murcia, and Betis defender Arzu had to go after picking up two bookings late on at Castellón. Under Federation rules, players with straight reds will have to sit out the next match in any domestic competition (in this case the league), whereas Arzu misses the next cup tie.

Three more players sent off at the weekend, including another Recreativo player, Iago Bouzón, for a second bookable offence with an hour gone against Getafe. The other two were both strikers who were given their second yellow cards for diving in the penalty area, Sevilla's Luis Fabiano in the first half against Valladolid (his side were two up at the time but subsequently lost), and Sergio García later in the game against Deportivo. It was Sergio's second red card of the season and he tops our chart as a result. Elsewhere Espanyol's Jarque is the first player to complete the five yellow card cycle in the league, and he will miss next weekend's game at Deportivo. (04.11.08)