Real Madrid went down without much of a fight on Tuesday night against AC Milan, save for a disallowed strike from Antonio Rudiger, and a late effort blazed over by Eder Militao. Rival fans have been pointing out that Los Blancos could have suffered more though.
In the first half, Rudiger escaped without a VAR intervention, as he locked up his Milan marker by his body and neck, in what looked more akin to a wrestling hold than a little contact at the corner.
Antonio Rudiger, we would like to present you with the official Casemiro invisibility cloak.https://t.co/o2T8j6ymI3
— Football España (@footballespana_) November 6, 2024
Meanwhile in the second half, Vinicius Junior was booked for dissent after telling the referee that he was crazy, and signalling as much with his hand. He was initially booked, and continued to tell the referee Slavko Vincic that he was crazy, which as Archivo VAR point out, is an offence that can and has seen others sent off.
‼️💥 Slavko Vincic le perdonó la expulsión a Vinicius en el Real Madrid – Milán.
🗣️ "𝗘𝘀𝘁𝗮́𝘀 𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗼".
👉🏻 El brasileño lo repitió en numerosas ocasiones señalándose la sien con el dedo.
❌ El esloveno, carente de personalidad, debió mostrarle la roja directa. pic.twitter.com/g48Wuizszg
— Archivo VAR (@ArchivoVAR) November 5, 2024
Finally, Jude Bellingham got into it last season with referee Pablo Gonzalez Fuertes, he did not take too kindly to the linesman on Tuesday. After he was flagged offside, he could be seen telling the linesman to ‘f*** off’, for which he also escaped punishment.
Oye que Bellingham le ha dicho “F*ck you” al abanderado y no le dicen nada
Pueden hacer lo que quieran es increíble pic.twitter.com/inXF4dWpI3
— Jeff (@JeffFcb14) November 5, 2024
Dissent is often handled inconsistently in both La Liga and in the Champions League, but the demonstrative nature of their protests would no doubt land them in trouble by the letter of the law. All the same, nobody wants to see players sent off for dissent, rather just keep it in check.
