Vinicius Junior banned for four La Liga matches, will miss Clasico against Barcelona

Real Madrid forward Vinicius Junior has been given a four-match La Liga ban by the Spanish football federation's disciplinary committee. He will miss the league match against Barcelona, known as El Clasico, on 25 October.

The suspension was announced on Wednesday. It follows his red card in Real Madrid's league match against Villarreal on Saturday. Real Madrid won that match. According to BBC Sport, the score was 1-0.

Vinicius came on as a substitute in the 52nd minute. He later scored what would have been Real Madrid's second goal. A video review of the build-up showed him pulling the hair of Villarreal's Nathan Saliba. The goal was disallowed, and Vinicius was shown a red card. He protested to the referee, and teammates tried to calm or restrain him.

The ban has two parts. Two matches are for violent conduct. Two are for his protests to the officials. Besides the Clasico, the ban covers league matches against Sevilla on Sunday 18 October, Racing Santander and Valencia. According to BBC Sport, the last two matches are on 1 November and 7 November.

Vinicius apologised on social media after the match.

Further details reported by individual outlets

According to Al Jazeera, the referee was Isidro Diaz de Mera, and Vinicius was sent off about 20 minutes after coming on. Al Jazeera also reported that Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho ran to join the players' celebrations before the goal was disallowed. BBC Sport reported that Mourinho did not attend the post-match news conference.

According to ESPN, the match was played at the Bernabeu and the disallowed goal came from a pass by Jude Bellingham. ESPN reported that Mourinho left Vinicius out of the starting XI after a difficult start to the season, in which he has scored once for the club.

ESPN also reported that the ban applies only to domestic competitions. According to ESPN, Vinicius was named in the starting XI for Wednesday's Champions League match at Roma and is available against RB Leipzig on 21 October and AEK on 4 November. ESPN said the Clasico will be played at Camp Nou. Al Jazeera described Barcelona as the reigning champions and current league leaders.

What each side says

The disciplinary committee said two matches were for violent conduct without the possibility of playing the ball, and two for arguing with the referee aggressively. BBC Sport quoted the committee as citing him "behaving violently ... (while) not being in a position to challenge for the ball". ESPN quoted it as citing "violent conduct, without the possibility of playing the ball" and acting "with an aggressive attitude and having to be restrained by his teammates." The two outlets use different English wording.

Al Jazeera quoted Vinicius's social media post as saying "sorry to the team and the fans".

The reports do not say whether Real Madrid intends to appeal. They do not include any response to the ban from Real Madrid or Mourinho, or any comment from Saliba or Villarreal.

Analysis

The ban removes Vinicius from four league matches at an important stage of the season, including the Clasico at the home of the league leaders, according to Al Jazeera and ESPN. If ESPN's report that the ban is limited to domestic competitions is accurate, his Champions League availability is unaffected. Several questions remain open. The reports do not say whether Real Madrid will appeal, nor how the club or Mourinho view the decision. How Real Madrid adjusts without him, and how he returns after the November international break, will depend on factors the reports reviewed by Vocemundi do not describe.

Produced by the Vocemundi newsroom with AI assistance.