Ethan Nwaneri shown accidental red card seconds into Dortmund match

Ethan Nwaneri was briefly shown a red card seconds into Borussia Dortmund’s match at Union Berlin after the referee accidentally pulled out the wrong card.

The Dortmund attacker brought down Union’s Tom Rothe with a sliding challenge in midfield during the opening moments of Saturday’s Bundesliga fixture.

Referee Daniel Schlager rushed over and raised red, giving Nwaneri an unexpected early scare. The official had intended to book him and immediately corrected the mistake, putting the red card away and showing yellow instead.

Nwaneri put both hands on his head when he saw the initial card. Schlager apologised as he corrected himself, allowing the Dortmund player to continue.

There was no wait for a VAR review or trip to the pitchside monitor. The referee recognised the mix-up himself and changed the card straight away.