BARCELONA, Spain — Cristiano Ronaldo lost his cool Sunday, and now Real Madrid has lost its main man for five matches at the start of the Spanish soccer season.

Ronaldo was banned for five games Monday after shoving a referee who sent him off for diving in a 3-1 victory over Barcelona in the Spanish Super Cup.

Ronaldo was suspended for one game for the red card in the Super Cup first leg at Barcelona, and four games for pushing referee Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea in the back, the Spanish football federation said.

Ronaldo will miss Wednesday’s return leg of the Super Cup at home plus the first four matches of Real Madrid’s league title defense. Madrid opens the league Sunday at Deportivo La Coruna. Its next three matches are against Valencia, promoted Levante and at Real Sociedad.

Ronaldo and Madrid have 10 days to appeal.

Still regaining peak fitness after an extended summer vacation, Ronaldo began the Super Cup on the bench, then came on in the 58th minute.

He scored with a long-range strike to put Madrid up 2-1 in the 80th minute, moments after Lionel Messi equalized for Barcelona from the penalty spot.

But Ronaldo’s goal celebration – he took his shirt off and flexed his muscles – earned him a yellow card.

Two minutes later he charged into the area and collided with defender Samuel Umtiti. Ronaldo went down hoping for a penalty. Instead, De Burgos showed him a second yellow for diving and sent him off.

Ronaldo raised his arms in disbelief, then stepped up to De Burgos and shoved him in the back with his right hand.

The federation also fined Ronaldo $3,500 and Real Madrid $1,650 for the shove, and another $705 for the player and $412 for the club for simulating a foul.

Last season, Las Palmas forward Marko Livaja was given an additional four-match suspension for pushing a referee after he was shown a red card.

In the 2014 Spanish Super Cup, Atletico Madrid Coach Diego Simeone was handed an eight-match suspension after he tapped the back of a linesman’s head. Simeone was suspended for four games – two games for protesting, one for ironically applauding the referee, and one for remaining in the stands instead of leaving the stadium.

Simeone served four matches and the other four are pending Atletico’s future Spanish Super Cup matches.

After guiding Madrid to the Champions League and Spanish league titles last season, the suspension comes during a difficult summer for Ronaldo.

In June, a state prosecutor accused him of defrauding Spain’s tax office of $16.5 million. He had to deny the accusations in person to an investigative judge.

Copy the Story Link