Geoffrey Kondogbia banned for Valencia vs Real Zaragoza Copa del Rey clash for something he did four years ago

The Valencia midfielder is being punished for a red card given at Sevilla in the 2012-13 season

Geoffrey Kondogbia will be suspended for Valencia's match against Real Zaragoza (Getty Images / Emilio Andreoli / Stringer )

Geoffrey Kondogbia was given a two-match ban four years ago, but will only carry out his punishment now.

In a bizarre application of 'rules are rules', Valencia boss Marcelino Garcia Toral is without Kondogbia as a midfield option for the Copa del Ray tie against Real Zaragoza.

This strange twist punishes Valencia for a foul committed from when Kondogbia played in a Sevilla shirt and was given a straight red in the 2012/13 semi-finals against Atletico Madrid.

Kondogbia should have served the ban the following season, after moving to Monaco, but Valencia discovered that it had not been served.

In a statement, Valencia said the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) had failed to notify the French Football Federation of the suspension, thus allowing Kondogbia to play immediately without serving the sanction.

The result is that upon his return to Spain, Kondogbia will now serve the suspension, robbing Toral of one of his star midfielders for the clash.