Two red cards in the midweek cup matches, both of which probably cost their respective sides a defeat. Atlético's Ujfalusi was shown a straight red for a foul on Recreativo's Fornaroli midway through the first half of their match, and Mallorca's Mattioni was shown a second yellow card shortly before the break in their tie at Rayo Vallecano.

Two more players sent off a the weekend as well, Villarreal's Iván Marcano rounding off a rotten evening against Almería with a second booking a few minutes after giving away a penalty, and Osasuna's Nekounam ending any hopes of a comeback against Deportivo after being sent off for a hard tackle which will probably keep Guardado out of the game for a few weeks. Another eight players will be suspended next weekend after picking up their fifth yellow cards of the season, including Juanma Ortíz and M'bami (Almería), Luis García (Espanyol), Duda (Málaga), Pelé and Nivaldo (Valladolid), and Aythami and Casado (Xerez). (12.01.10)