Referee report might help Cristiano Ronaldo avoid 'violent conduct' charge

Ronaldo was shown a direct red, after punching Edimar

Cristiano Ronaldo might have been thrown a lifeline by referee Alejandro Hernandez, who didn’t refer to violent conduct, while explaining why he sent off the Real Madrid striker. His report read: “In the 83rd minute Cristiano Ronaldo was sent off for the following reason: kicking an opponent when the ball was out of reach."

Minutes, after attempting to kick a Cordoba player, Ronaldo was found guilty of lashing out at Edimar, which resulted in a direct sending off. However, the referee and the linesman failed to notice the punch, that was involved in the altercation.

The La Liga Refereeing Committee will decide over the next week on the tenure of Ronaldo’s suspension. He will most definitely miss the clash against Real Sociedad next Saturday but, if the ban stretches more than the length of two matches, that might see him miss the derby game against Atletico.

The referee’s report just might help Ronaldo escape a definite violent conduct misdemeanour.