Real Madrid defender Antonio Rüdiger has apologised for his behaviour at the end of Saturday's match against Barcelona.
The German, who has already been substituted, was shown a red card after throwing ice packs at referee Ricardo de Burgos and was barely held back by his teammates on the touchline. Rüdiger was extremely unhappy with the referee's decision to stop a promising Real attack late on, with Barcelona leading 3-2. With that result, the match ended and the "blue-reds" won the Copa del Rey.
"There is no excuse for my behaviour last night. I am very sorry for that," he said on social media.
"I think we played a very good game, especially in the second half. After the 111th minute I had no chance to help my teammates and before the final whistle I made a mistake. I apologize to the referee and to everyone I disappointed last night," added Rudiger.
The central defender is likely to receive a severe punishment for his behavior, with media in Spain speculating that it will be between 4 and 12 matches. Real Madrid have five more La Liga games to play before the end of the season, one of which is against Barcelona. The "White Ballet", however, lags four points behind the Catalans in the standings.