Liverpool fined for fielding ineligible player in the Carabao Cup
Current Premier League leaders Liverpool have been fined a sum of Ā£200,000 by the EFL for fielding an ineligible player Pedro Chirivella in the third round of Carabao Cup against MK Dons where Liverpool won 2-0. However, Liverpool have avoided an embarrassing expulsion from the Competition.
Spanish midfielder Pedro Chirivella came on as a substitute for Naby Keita in the match despite him not cleared to play international football. Chirivella spent last season on loan at Spanish side Extremadura and needed paperwork from the Football Association to play in England again. Things became so bad that Liverpool were also facing the prospect of being kicked out of the competition for playing Chirivella but the EFL have decided not to expel the Merseyside club.
The Football LeagueĀ said it "wasn't appropriate" to expel Liverpool from the competition because of "mitigating factors". Liverpool escaped with the fine of Ā£200,000 and Ā£100,000 of the fine will be suspended until the end of next season. Liverpool also released a statement that they "accept the judgement, outcome and punishment", which they described as "proportionate with the technical indiscretion committed".
The EFL said Liverpool had "sought the assistance of the Football Association" before the season, and had been given clearance to include midfielder Chirivella on the team sheet for Premier League Two games. An EFL statement read, "The club's breach was in part due to the challenges it encountered with securing the correct international clearance, and its subsequent ability to include the player on team sheets despite the lack of clearance. As a result, the board concluded the most appropriate sanction was a financial penalty."
The Reds also released a statement saying, "Even though there were mitigating factors, which were beyond our control or jurisdiction, we believe it appropriate we apologise to the competition's governing body and also to Milton Keynes Dons."