Sergio Ramos received a yellow card during the closing stages of Real Madrid's victory over Ajax on Wednesday night and viewers believe there was more to the booking the meets the eye.
The Madrid captain recklessly took out Danish forward Kasper Dolberg as the Dutch side attempted to break, getting absolutely nowhere near the ball.
He appeared furious with Dolberg but his anger dissipated the moment the card was brandished.
The yellow was his third in this season's Champions League, meaning he will now serve a one-game suspension in the second leg of of the last-16 tie.
And many believe that that is exactly the result that Ramos was looking for with Madrid now clear favourites to advance after a big away result.
The 32-year-old will then be free to play in the quarter-final, which will likely be a tougher test.
BT Sport's commentators immediately noticed something was up with one quickly asking if that was 'the booking he was looking for' following the blatant foul.
'That's very obvious that he was looking to get booked there,' the other responded. He's just gambling everything there. He knows it's not enough to get sent off, he just gets the booking he needs.
Ramos has been accused of deliberately seeking bookings in the past, notably when he and Xabi Alonso, both on the verge of suspension, were booked in the final minutes of a Champions League first leg against Galatasaray in 2013.
The same duo also faced similar accusations in a group game at Ajax in 2010, with Madrid 4-0 up and guaranteed a last-16 spot. They dallied over set-pieces, each earning a second yellow for time-wasting, suspension for the irrelevant final group game, and a clean slate for the knockout phase.
UEFA rules stipulate that players will receive a ‘suspension for two competition matches or for a specified period for clearly receiving a yellow or red card on purpose’.
