Barcelona vice-president slams Kylian Mbappe suspension decision

On Tuesday, it was confirmed that Kylian Mbappe would be eligible to play for Real Madrid against Barcelona in the Copa del Rey final after he was handed a one-match suspension for his red card during the victory over Alaves at the weekend.

The decision means that Mbappe will only miss Real Madrid’s upcoming La Liga fixture against Athletic Club, and he will be able to play against Getafe next week, which is Carlo Ancelotti’s side’s last match before the Copa del Rey final at La Cartuja.

The decision of the Spanish Football Federation’s Disciplinary Committee has been widely discussed in the last 24 hours, with many criticising it. And the latest to do so has been Barcelona vice-president Rafa Yuste, who made his thoughts clear during an interview with RAC1 (via Marca).

“I would say it’s absolutely absurd. It was a shocking tackle, which could have injured the opponent and is absolutely disproportionate. If he becomes one of our players, they don’t do it because they are clean players, very sporty… If he goes crazy like what happened with the Real Madrid player and it only reaffirms that we have to do much better so as not to depend on these things. Because this is a bad example for football. This cannot be allowed and for me a one-match ban is a shame.”

There had been early speculation that Mbappe could be handed a ban longer than two matches, which would have been enough to count across all competitions, rather than just La Liga. And that would have seen him miss the Copa del Rey final, but now he is free to help Real Madrid try to get one over Barcelona, whom they have lost to in the previous two meetings this season.