Cristiano Ronaldo elbows the defender in the face and earns a red card. However, it was Ronaldo’s two goals earlier in the game that gave Real Madrid the 2-0 win over Malaga. Overall though, Ronaldo maintains his temper pretty well, doesn’t get too emotional, frustrated yes, like the time he was stuck in that Barcelona triangle. But Ronaldo doesn’t get too many yellow cards or reds given how often he’s fouled. Here the fouls and shirt pulling that went on earlier got the best of him and he lashed out.
Turns out that Mtiliga ended up with a broken nose after the incident. For Ronaldo, I can see why he gets frustrated with defenders always pulling on his jersey, but throwing his elbow back is too dangerous and he had to be punished. In the future though, I think the referee has to keep an out of jersey pulling and grabbing. The refs should always protect and side with the most skillful players in the game. |