Vinícius on the edge: Real Madrid may miss Mestalla clash over yellow cards

Fixture and yellow-card danger

Brazilian star Vinícius Júnior is at risk of missing Real Madrid's next match at Mestalla against Valencia if he picks up a yellow card against Elche in Sunday's 22nd round of La Liga.

Yellow-card rules and the reset

According to league rules, a player is suspended for one game after reaching five yellow cards in a season. Once the suspension is served, cautions reset and another ban awaits after every additional five yellows.

Vinícius currently has four yellow cards this season.

The Brazilian's relationship with Valencia's fans remains tense, following racist abuse directed at him in a previous meeting, which led to five Valencia supporters being jailed.

Valencia had in May threatened legal action against Netflix over what it called lies included in a documentary about Vinícius Júnior.

The documentary showed footage of Valencia supporters to illustrate the alleged racist abuse, but the club accused Netflix of distorting chants to make them appear harsher.

Punchline 1: If Vinícius ends up on the bench, at least his popcorn will be louder than the crowd.

Punchline 2: Five yellows mean a one match vacation in football terms, the sport's way of saying take five and stay home, Netflix optional.