As amazing of a year as Cristiano Ronaldo has been having scoring the ball, he has equally impressed by racking up a shitload of yellow cards and ultimately costing him a one game ban for Real Madrid.

As Marca notes, Ronaldo picked up his fifth yellow card in La Liga this season against Real Sociedad, and this will cause him to be sidelined for an accumulation of offenses for the first time in his Madrid career.

The Portuguese star will not be available for the team’s league fixture against Osasuna next weekend.

In a strange coincidence, the suspension comes on the heels of Ronaldo’s first time wearing the captain’s armband in a competitive match, as noted in Marca’s report.

Fortunately for Madrid, Osasuna is currently on the bottom of the La Liga table. Still, the team must be careful not to overlook the match, as it has suffered some surprising defeats already this season.

Losses to teams such as Sevilla and Getafe have put Madrid in an unfavorable position. Jose Mourinho’s side is currently third in the table and trails Barcelona by a seemingly insurmountable 16 points.

In addition, the club needed two second-half goals from Ronaldo within two minutes in order to build enough of a cushion to beat Real Sociedad 4-3.

Playing without Ronaldo has a significant impact on the team, and although dropping points to a side bound for relegation is nearly unthinkable, the 27-year-old’s absence certainly increases the chances for an upset.

Madrid needs every point it can get going forward in La Liga, and having its best player on the bench makes it that much harder to accomplish this. But in the end, the suspension could not have come at a better time.

Kyle Moore | Elite.