LFC Live - UEFA rules explained as Real Madrid nightmare scenario for Liverpool clash emerges

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Trent Alexander-Arnold's injury combined with Dani Carvajal's red card spells trouble for Real Madrid(Image: Aitor Alcalde - UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images)

Liverpool face the first of two Spanish tests in the Champions League tonight as they host Atletico Madrid at Anfield, while a showdown with Real Madrid awaits in November.

Arne Slot will he hoping to see his team make the perfect start to the competition Liverpool have won six times in their history, but bowed out of in the round of 16 last term.

Diego Simeone's Atletico gave them some close run-ins under previous boss Jurgen Klopp, including knocking the Reds out in 2020 just before the Covid-19 pandemic.

A winning start would set the Reds up nicely for the rest of the Champions League's group phase, during which they are scheduled to play Real – who are now managed by former Red Xabi Alonso – in the first week of November.

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When that match was drawn, immediate attention was drawn to the fact Trent Alexander-Arnold had been put in the firing line of a return to his former home with the club he opted to join instead of renewing his contract with Liverpool.

However, that reunion has been plunged into doubt because of a hamstring injury sustained in the opening five minutes of Los Blancos' Champions League opener against Marseille on Tuesday night.

Test results are yet to be revealed for how long the full-back will be sidelined.

Alexander-Arnold was replaced by veteran Dani Carvajal after going off injured.

However, the Spaniard was then sent off for head-butting opposition goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli with 21 minutes left to play at the Santiago Bernabeu.

UEFA rules dictate that a player or team official sent off by the referee is automatically suspended for one match in UEFA club competitions.

Carvajal is therefore banned from facing Kazakhstani outfit Kairat Almaty on Tuesday, September 30.

But in the event of a serious offence, such as the Spaniard's headbutt, a UEFA disciplinary body is 'entitled to augment this punishment'.

This could mean extending the length of the offender's ban to more than one match.

Thus, Real might have landed themselves with a nightmare scenario six weeks in advance of travelling to Merseyside to face Liverpool at Anfield.

Trent Alexander-Arnold went off injured just four minutes into his Champions League debut for Real Madrid(Image: Getty Images)

If Alexander-Arnold's injury test results come back negative and he is to have an extended period on the sidelines, plus Carvajal's suspension is extended from one match to the next three, Alonso will be without a defined senior right-back for when he must select a team against the Reds.

Slot has Cody Gakpo, Hugo Ekitike, and Rio Ngumoha, all ready to exploit that potential chink in Real's armour.

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