Antonio Rudiger will miss the semi-final of Euro 2024, if Germany advance to the next round of the tournament with a victory against Spain, after he was booked for a challenge on La Roja striker Dani Olmo during their quarter-final clash.
Rudiger had already conceded a yellow card during Germany’s group-stage clash against Hungary last month.
Ahead of the tournament, UEFA had amended its rules on yellow card suspensions, stating that if a player receives two yellow cards, they will be suspended for one match. But yellow cards are wiped after the quarter-finals end, meaning that the 31-year-old’s booking against Hungary, still counts.
Spain had troubled the hosts in the opening 15 minutes of the match, with 16-year-old superstar Lamine Yamal instigating a dangerous attack from the half-way line. He found Morata, who skirted forward, before playing a ball into Olmo darting towards the Germany penalty area.
With Olmo advancing, Rudiger stepped in to bring the Red Bull Leipzig star down just on the edge of the box, prompting referee Anthony Taylor to show the former chelsea centre back a yellow card and give Spain a free-kick.
Ally Mccoist, speaking on ITV’s coverage of the match, questioned whether the Real Madrid star needed to bring Olmo down, noting that Joshua Kimmich was arriving behind him.
‘Rudiger probably doesn’t realise he had a bit of cover behind him but he couldn’t take the chance,’ McCoist told ITV sport.
Yamal stepped up to have a crack at goal from around 20-yards out, curling his shot low around the wall, with the ball just drifting wide of the uprights.
Rudiger, meanwhile, will now miss out on playing in the next round of the tournament, should his team claim victory this evening.
He is not the only player who could miss out on playing in the semi-final, with his team-mate Robert Andrich also at risk of receiving a suspension, while Spain’s Dani Carvajal, Dani Vivian and their captain Alvaro Morata also at risk of being suspended, having all received a yellow card prior to tonight’s match.
More to follow…
