Cristiano Ronaldo says he is being persecuted after his five-match ban was upheld. The Real Madrid star was suspensed for a red card and pushing the referee in Sunday's first leg of the Spanish Super Cup against Barcelona. His appeal was rejected on Wednesday, the same day of the second leg at home against Barca. Ronaldo took to Instagram to express his displeasure as he will sit out the first four matches of the season.

"It's impossible to stay immune to this situation," he wrote. "Five games feels exaggerated and ridiculous. This is something we like to call persecution. Thank you to my teammates and fans for the support."

Calling out the league's decision makers by saying you are being persecuted is not the best avenue to go down here. That likely won't help his case. Ronaldo put his hand on the official, and that's a no-no. Time to just accept it. 

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