Liverpool may be top of the Champions League table with a 100% record but two of their players will now have to tread carefully in the competition. Both Alexis Mac Allister and Ibrahima Konate are within one booking of having to serve a one-match suspension due to the totting up procedure regards yellow cards in Europe.
Mac Allister joined Konate in walking the disciplinary tightrope after being cautioned during additional time at the end of the 2-1 win over Lille at Anfield on Tuesday evening that booked a place in the knockout stages for Arne Slot’s side.
The Liverpool midfielder has already missed one game in the league stage – last month’s 1-0 win in Girona – having picked up three bookings during the early stages of the competition.
UEFA rules dictate every second booking after reaching that threshold – meaning the fifth, seventh, ninth and so on – will result in another one-match suspension. Mac Allister is currently on four bookings.
The amnesty for yellow cards only comes into force until after the quarter-finals have been completed, meaning both Mac Allister and Konate will have to negotiate five more games – the final first stage clash at PSV Eindhoven next week, along with both legs of the round of 16 and potentially the quarter-finals – before the bookings are no longer counted.
With Liverpool requiring only a point in Holland to secure top spot, it’s possible neither Konate – who remained on the bench against Lille – nor Mac Allister will be risked with the Reds already directly through to the last 16.
Mac Allister has also served a one-match ban in the Premier League after reaching five top-flight bookings, with Dominik Szoboszlai and Darwin Nunez picking up similar bans during the past month.
With the domestic season having passed the halfway point, the Premier League amnesty has changed to a two-match suspension for reaching 10 bookings after 32 games, while there is a three-game ban for totalling 15 at any point in the campaign.