Alisson Becker Fined £8,000 After Controversial Penalty Outburst
Alisson Becker has been hit with an £8,000 fine by the Football Association after the Liverpool goalkeeper lost his temper in the aftermath of a controversial penalty decision.
The Brazilian was charged with misconduct for his behaviour in the tunnel area at full-time, when he took his frustrations out on the fourth official’s numbers board as he headed back towards the dressing room.
“It was alleged that the goalkeeper acted in an improper manner around the tunnel area after the final whistle. Alisson Becker has subsequently accepted the charge against him and received the standard penalty.”
His anger stemmed from the late decision to award a penalty for a foul on Neco Williams, given long after the defender had taken his shot and only then made contact with the Liverpool keeper. Alisson reacted furiously on the pitch and was still seething when the whistle went.
The whole sequence had already been wrapped in farce. In the build-up, the fourth official’s numbers board malfunctioned, delaying a triple substitution that Andoni Iraola had been trying to make. The stoppage added to the sense of confusion, then came the spot-kick call that pushed tempers over the edge.
Since then, the Key Match Incident (KMI) Panel has ruled that referee Sam Barrott made the wrong decision in awarding the penalty, a verdict that will do little to change the result – or Alisson’s fine – but underlines why the Liverpool goalkeeper felt so incensed in the first place.
