Alisson Becker Fined £8,000 for Misconduct After Nottingham Forest Draw
Alisson Becker has been fined £8,000 by the FA after accepting a misconduct charge for his actions following Liverpool’s 2-2 draw with Nottingham Forest last month.
The Liverpool goalkeeper reacted angrily at the City Ground after being penalised for a late challenge on former team-mate Neco Williams, a decision that allowed Morgan Gibbs-White to put Forest 2-1 up from the spot. Victor Munoz struck late to rescue a point for Andoni Iraola’s side, but the controversy around the penalty dominated the aftermath.
As the players left the pitch, Alisson’s frustration spilled over. He was seen kicking the fourth official’s electronic board in the tunnel area, the same board that had already drawn criticism after malfunctioning and delaying Liverpool from making three substitutions in the moments before the penalty incident.
The FA confirmed the charge and punishment in a statement, saying: “Liverpool’s Alisson Becker has been fined £8,000 for misconduct at the Premier League fixture against Nottingham Forest on 29 August.
“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.”
The sting deepened for the Brazilian this week when the Premier League’s Key Match Incidents (KMI) Panel ruled that the spot-kick should not have been awarded in the first place.
Three of the five panel members felt Alisson’s challenge on Williams did not merit a penalty. Their view was clear: the contact came from the goalkeeper’s momentum as he tried to make a legitimate save, and did not reach the level of a foul.
In the panel’s words: “The contact from Alisson was inevitable as a consequence of his momentum in attempting to save the ball. The contact made was not reckless and below the threshold for a penalty.”
Yet the same panel backed the VAR process on the day. Referee Sam Barrott was not sent to the pitchside monitor by VAR Michael Oliver, and the KMI group unanimously agreed that, under the current framework, the non-intervention was correct because the on-field call did not meet the “clear and obvious” bar required to overturn it.
“However, the non-intervention by the VAR was unanimously supported on the basis that it was not a clear and obvious error,” the panel added.
So Alisson leaves the episode with a fine, a formal misconduct mark on his record, and the knowledge that an independent panel believes the penalty he protested so fiercely should never have been given.
