Antonio Rudiger (Jersey No 22) could be facing a lengthy suspension after he was sent off for throwing a bag of ice toward the referee and angrily confronting him during a fiery ending to Real Madrid’s 3-2 loss to Barcelona in the Copa del Rey final on Saturday. According to AP report, the ice didn’t hit the official but Rudiger’s aggressive outburst while being restrained by teammates earned him a red card despite already being substituted.
Vinicius & Rudiger have both received a red card for this, embarrassing stuff. pic.twitter.com/8Kxb74VF3x
— RMFCTeam (@RMFC_team) April 26, 2025
The dramatic incident unfolded in the final minutes of a tense El Clásico showdown at a packed stadium, where tempers flared as Madrid chased a late equalizer.
Rudiger, visibly frustrated and holding the bag of ice, had to be physically held back by Real Madrid players and staff as he shouted furiously at the referee. His meltdown capped a chaotic end to the match that also saw teammates Jude Bellingham and Lucas Vázquez receive red cards for their protests against the officiating.
Rudiger had to be restrained after he became furious against the refereepic.twitter.com/gHrBvZGxhl
— Luis Mazariegos (@luism8989) April 26, 2025
Jules Kounde wins Copa Del Rey For Barcelona
Jules Kounde went from zero to hero in a dramatic Copa del Rey final, scoring the winning goal in extra time to hand Barcelona a 3-2 victory over Real Madrid.
Barcelona started the match on the front foot, pressing high and dominating possession. Their energy overwhelmed Madrid early on, and it paid off in the 28th minute. Pedri played a clever pass to Lamine Yamal, who pulled it back for Pedri to fire a beautiful shot into the top-left corner from outside the box.
Real Madrid offered little in the first half, but things changed after the break. Kylian Mbappe came on and immediately sparked life into his side. Vinicius Junior came close with a low shot after stealing the ball, and not long after, Mbappe was fouled by Frenkie de Jong. From the resulting free-kick, he curled a brilliant shot in off the post to level the score.
Madrid kept pushing, and soon took the lead when Aurelien Tchouameni rose highest to head in from a corner, making it 2-1. At that point, Madrid looked in control.
But Barcelona hit back. Lamine Yamal slipped Ferran Torres through on goal, and the forward calmly rounded Courtois before rolling the ball into the empty net to make it 2-2.
In the dying moments of normal time, Barcelona thought they had a penalty when Raphinha was brought down in the box. However, after a VAR check, the decision was overturned and the game went into extra time.
Extra time saw fewer chances as tired legs took over. Just when it seemed the match was heading for penalties, Jules Kounde made a decisive movestealing the ball from Brahim Diaz and slotting a low shot into the bottom corner to give Barcelona the lead.
Madrid nearly had a last-minute penalty after Gavi fouled Mbappe, but the flag went up for offside in the build-up. With that let-off, Barcelona held on to lift the Copa del Rey trophy in a thrilling El Clásico final.
