Which Real Madrid players are one booking away from quarterfinal suspension?

An Englishman, Frenchman and a referee went into the Bernabéu with yellow cards on their minds, but the punchline may not be so funny.

One match, a double threat to Real Madrid. Jude Bellingham and Eduardo Camavinga are a booking away from missing out on  the first leg of the Champions League quarterfinals, if Los Blancos progress. That’s right, a single yellow card against RB Leipzig for either the Englishman or the Frenchman will deprive them of helping their teammates for fifty percent of the next tie, but first things first, getting through is the most important thing.

Why Bellingham and Camavinga are walking UCL tightrope

Both midfielders have accumulated two yellow cards this season in the top continental competition, putting them one card away from completing their first cycle of cautions. Curiously, they received their first yellow card during the second matchday of the group stage in Naples. French referee Clément Turpin cautioned his compatriot Camavinga for a foul that prevented a counterattack by the Napoli team, and Bellingham was booked for unnecessary dissent.

Camavinga received his second yellow card in Braga during the third matchday for a foul on Álvaro Djaló (the recent signing of Athletic Bilbao) and has since avoided receiving a third. On the other hand, Bellingham was shown his second yellow card for an altercation with Rani Khedira (the brother of former Madrid player Sami) during the match against Union Berlin.

Camavinga and Bellingham will have to tread carefully tonight and, if successful, then in the hypothetical quarterfinal first leg to avoid suspension. After that round, their yellow cards will be wiped clean.

Camavinga and Bellingham in the Champions League

The Englishman returns to the team after missing the first leg match in Germany. The Stourbridge native was unable to participate in Leipzig due to an ankle sprain he sustained days before the Girona match, which also kept him out of the league games against Rayo Vallecano and Sevilla.

The match at the Red Bull Arena and the encounter against Braga at the Bernabéu have been the only games Jude has missed in this Champions League campaign, in which he has scored four goals. In total, the Englishman has racked up 20 goals in all competitions.

Camavinga has also played in five out of the seven matches for Ancelotti’s team in this edition of the top continental competition. In his case, he was absent from the last two group stage matches: against Napoli at the Bernabéu and in Berlin.

The reason for his absence was a ruptured lateral collateral ligament in his right knee, which he sustained at the French national team’s training camp during the November international break, keeping him sidelined for a month and a half.