One red card in the cup
semi-finals, Sevilla's Sergio Sánchez getting his marching orders late
on after picking up a second yellow card for a foul on substitute Adebayor. The
ex Espanyol defender can be excused though for being a little tired at the time
as he was playing his first full match since returning from a long lay off
after undergoing heart surgery. Only one red at the weekend, and that was
cancelled on appeal. Sporting's Gregory was the unlucky man after giving away
two bookings and a penalty in the first quarter of an hour against Athletic
Bilbao. The disciplinary committee ruled out the first yellow card as they
didn't consider the hand ball to be deliberate, but that was little consolation
to Sporting, who went on to lose the match. Gregory himself will still be
banned next weekend as the other yellow card was his fifth of the season, and
he will be joined on the sidelines by six other players who also reached the
five card threshold, his team-mate, Lora, plus Ujfalusi (Atlético),
Laure (Deportivo), Xabi Prieto (Real Sociedad), Banega (Valencia), and also
Gurpegui (Athletic), the second player to complete the cycle for a second time.
(09.02.11) |