UEFA hands Real Madrid's Carvajal 1-match ban for deliberate yellow card

Dani Carvajal won’t be available for the first leg of Real Madrid’s Round of 16 encounter after UEFA banned the full-back one match for an intentional yellow card he picked up against APOEL last month.

He was initially issued a two-match ban, but Carvajal will only be unavailable for one game after missing Real Madrid’s Champions League encounter with Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday.

Carvajal was found guilty of manipulating the match official into producing a yellow card in order to serve a suspension during Real Madrid’s final group-stage match rather than in the knockout phase.

The tactic, which occurred in the final minutes of Real Madrid’s 6-0 win, was a violation of Article 15 in UEFA’s disciplinary code, hence the two-match ban rather than the customary one-match suspension for an accumulation of yellow cards.

Achraf Hakimi, 18, could be in line to replace Carvajal after filling in for the Spanish defender earlier this season.

Real Madrid will discover its Round of 16 opponent at the draw on Dec. 11.