Vinícius handed four-match ban, Madrid plans further appeal

Real Madrid forward Vinícius Júnior has been suspended for four La Liga matches, including the October 25 game against Barcelona, after his dismissal against Villarreal. The ruling currently makes him unavailable for the first El Clásico of the season, though Real Madrid plans to appeal after its initial challenge was rejected. The Spanish Football Federation disciplinary committee imposed two matches for the incident involving Villarreal defender Nathan Saliba and two more for Vinícius’s protests after the red card. The suspension covers Real Madrid’s league fixtures against Sevilla on October 18, Barcelona on October 25, Racing Santander on November 1 and Valencia on November 7. Vinícius was sent off during Real Madrid’s 1-0 win over Villarreal after a video assistant referee review. The review led the referee to disallow a goal and dismiss Vinícius over a hair-pulling incident involving Saliba. The committee treated that conduct and Vinícius’s subsequent protests toward the referee as separate grounds for punishment. Real Madrid challenged the sanction, but the committee rejected the club’s initial appeal. The club plans to contest the four-match ban further. The timing and...