Four years after a referee waved play on when his hair was pulled at Stamford Bridge, Marc Cucurella stood on the Bernabéu touchline on Saturday night and reminded football that the call now goes the other way.
“I hope… I hope that if they touch a hair of mine, you show them the red. Go to the VAR,” the full-back told the fourth official, as Vinicius Junior was being sent off for pulling the hair of Villarreal defender Nathan Saliba.
Cucurella pointed his finger towards the pitch for emphasis. Antonio Rüdiger joined him on the touchline. Bernardo Silva eventually walked his team-mate back onto the grass so play could restart.
Vinicius had come off the bench in the 52nd minute and lasted 20 before celebrating what he thought was a goal. Referee Isidro Díaz de Mera went to the monitor, ruled it out and showed a straight red in the 72nd minute. Real Madrid held on with 10 men to beat Villarreal 1-0.
Read also: Hincapie ankle scare adds to Arsenal’s growing defensive injury list
Dean admitted the Stamford Bridge error
The jab had a specific memory behind it. In August 2022, during a 2-2 draw between Chelsea and Tottenham at Stamford Bridge, Cristian Romero grabbed Cucurella’s hair in the sixth minute of added time. Referee Anthony Taylor did not act and VAR did not intervene. Harry Kane equalised seconds later from the resulting corner, costing Chelsea two points.
Mike Dean, the VAR on duty that day, later admitted he had got it wrong.
“In the few seconds I had to study Romero pulling Cucurella’s hair, I didn’t deem it a violent act,” Dean said.
“I could not award a free kick as VAR, but I could recommend to Taylor that he visit the referee review area to consider a possible red card.”
Read also: Report: Staggering €60m figure linked to potential Mbappé Real Madrid extension
Cucurella called it “very clear” at the time that Romero’s action had been a red card offence.
Barcelona on 25 October now in doubt
Vinicius posted a short message on Instagram in Spanish after the final whistle.
“Sorry to the team and the fans,” he wrote.
The Spanish Football Federation will review the dismissal under Article 130 of its disciplinary code, which covers violent conduct. Standard sanctions run from one to three matches. A ban of two games or more would keep Vinicius out of El Clásico at Barcelona on 25 October.
Read also: City demolish Liverpool but the FFP question follows them out of Anfield
Read also: Report: Arsenal clarify position on Haaland as Man City appeal looms
