Sergio Ramos has found himself at the centre of controversy again after admitting that he intentionally ended up getting booked in Real Madrid's Champions League clash with Ajax on Wednesday.
The 30-year-old Madrid captain took out Kasper Dolberg when the Dutch side were on the counterattack, which left the referee with no choice but to show Ramos that all-too-familiar sight of a yellow card.
The Spanish centre-back has now picked up his third yellow in the Champions League this season and, as a result, will be ruled out of the second leg at the Santiago Bernabéu next month.
However, the Daily Mail reports that Ramos could receive longer than a one-match ban after his post-match comments.
"Not to underestimate the opponent, but sometimes you have to take these decisions and that's what I decided," he told El Chiringuito TV.
In fact, even one of BT Sport's commentators pointed out the challenge, raising the question on if it was the "the booking he was looking for."
El Chiringuito TV
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¡¡OJO!! ¿HA FORZADO LA TARJETA @SergioRamos?
"Sí, la verdad que viendo el resultado... Es algo que tenía presente. No es subestimar al rival pero a veces toca tomar decisiones y lo he decidido así".
¡TODOS a #ChiringuitoMadrid YA!
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'87: Asensio puts Real ahead
'89: Sergio Ramos yellow, will miss second leg
"That is very obvious that he was looking to get booked there."
Master of the Dark Arts?
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"That's very obvious that he was looking to get booked there," the other commentator responded.
"He's just gambling everything there. He knows it's not enough to get sent off, he just gets the booking he needs."
According to UEFA's rules, a player will receive a "suspension for two competition matches or for a specified period for clearly receiving a yellow or red card on purpose."
The newspaper has pointed out that Dani Carvajal was hit with the ban after he was booked in the final minute of Madrid's 6-0 win against APOEL in the Champions League last season.
Karim Benzema opened the scoring for Santiago Solari's men in the second half, which was thanks to a brilliant assist from Vinícius Júnior.
Hakim Ziyech equalised for Ajax, though Marco Asensio would seal Los Blancos' victory late on in the match.
The clash at the Johan Cruyff Arena wasn't without its other controversies, too, mainly for how VAR was called into action when Ajax scored and for it to ultimately be ruled out.
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@SergioRamos is now:
Most booked player in the @ChampionsLeague.
Some things are meant to be.
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Real Madrid appearances for Sergio Ramos
#UCL @SergioRamos
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599 matches
84 goals
200 yellow cards
24 red cards
20 trophies
Tonight, Sergio Ramos joins Real Madrid's
901
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