Madrid's Vini Jr. gets 4-game ban after hair-pull red card; will miss Clásico

BREAKING: Vinicius Junior handed a four-game ban for his red card against Villarreal, ruling him out of this month's Clasico against Barcelona.

Vinicius Junior just pulled someone's hair out of the Clásico.

Four games for the Real Madrid forward, and the Spanish federation split the bill neatly. Two for violent conduct, for yanking Nathan Saliba's hair against Villarreal, and two more for how he reacted when the referee showed him red. This is the moment it all kicked off.

And the cruellest part, seconds after the hair pull he'd tucked away Bellingham's pass to make it 2-0, then VAR took the goal away and sent him with it. Here he is being dragged away by his own teammates. He's apologised to the fans, but the damage is done. Sevilla, the Clásico at Camp Nou on the 25th, Racing and Valencia, all gone. The ban's domestic only, so Mourinho still gets him in Europe.

Barcelona's Hansi Flick was asked about it today, and he could barely hide the smile. One goal all season, benched by Mourinho, and now watching the biggest game in football from his sofa. For a player who was nearly a Ballon d'Or winner, that's a long way down.

This is Sara White, reporting for HIT.