Euro 2024 viewers will have been surprised to see Georgia defender Giorgi Gvelesiani booked as soon as he entered the pitch on Saturday.
The 33-year-old centre-back was introduced after 81 minutes played against the Czech Republic and was on for no more than 10 seconds before being cautioned by referee Daniel Siebert.
The eastern European nation had a glorious chance to win the game in the final stages, with Saba Lobjanidze smashing his effort over on the bar with just seconds remaining on the clock, as both sides played out an entertaining 1-1 draw.
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Georgia's head coach Willy Sagnol decided to freshen things up as the game entered the final knockings, but it was Gvelesiani who was quickly punished. The 33-year-old was deemed to be "too eager" to enter the fray, as the substitutes board had not yet been raised before he took to the pitch.
Referee Siebert quickly applied the rule in IFAB's Laws of the Game which states in Law 12.3 that a player can be shown a yellow card and or cautioned for "entering or re-entering the field of play without the referee’s permission".
The obscure rule break occurred while the Czechs were also in the process of making two substitutions, meaning Georgian Gvelesiani should have waited on the sidelines, leaving the officials with no choice but to punish his actions at the Volksparkstadion.
Georgia's 1-1 draw means they are currently bottom of Group F and they will face top team Portugal in the final fixture, knowing they must achieve a result against Cristiano Ronaldo et al to even stand a chance of progression to the knockout stages.
Giorgi Mamardashvili was impressive for Georgia on Saturday, with the Valencia shot-stopper known to be liked by Premier League side Newcastle United. Producing a Man-of-the-Match display, the talented goalkeeper could have put himself more than in the shop window with his showing.
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