Luis Suarez out of Copa del Rey final after red card suspension upheld
Barcelona are set to face Alaves in the Copa del Rey final, but they'll be without the point of their vaunted attacking trident, Luis Suarez. The Uruguayan was sent off in the second leg of Barcelona's semifinal against Atletico Madrid on Tuesday, and the club immediately appealed the decision.
On Thursday, the Spanish federation rejected that appeal. In fact, the federation handed Suarez a two-game ban after the 30-year-old saw red in the 90th minute. An elbow from Suarez caught Koke, which the prompted referee Jesus Gil Manzano to show Suarez a yellow card — his second of the match.
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Suarez didn't see any harm in the contact and thought Koke overplayed the incident.
"I'm laughing at that second yellow card, it's not even a foul," Suarez told Gol TV via the BBC. "I did absolutely nothing. It was what he [Koke] wanted."
Unfortunately for Suarez and Barcelona, the federation's opinion is the one that counts. With a two-match ban, Suarez misses the May 27 final and will also be out for Barcelona's first domestic cup tie next season. Of course, Barcelona have an embarrassment of riches in their attack and will probably be able to ease past Alaves, who sit 12th in the La Liga table at the moment.
With Suarez sidelined, Barcelona will have to lean on the likes of Lionel Messi and Neymar to pick up the slack, along with Arda Turan and Denis Suarez.
Still, Suarez would certainly much rather prefer to be out there if Barcelona lift the trophy for the third straight year.
