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 lost his composure at full-time at the City Ground, furious at the penalty awarded against him for a challenge on former team-mate Neco Williams. Morgan Gibbs-White converted from the spot to put Forest in front, before Victor Munoz struck late to rescue a point for Andoni Iraola’s side.
The controversy did not end with the whistle. As Alisson left the pitch, he was seen kicking the fourth official’s electronic board in anger. The same board had already been at the centre of frustration for Liverpool, malfunctioning and delaying a triple substitution in the moments leading up to the penalty incident.
On Friday, the FA confirmed the punishment in a formal statement.
“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 of the fine has been sharpened by the Premier League’s Key Match Incidents (KMI) Panel, which has since ruled that the penalty 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 spot-kick. Their view was that the collision came from the goalkeeper’s natural momentum as he tried to make a save, rather than any reckless action.
“The contact from Alisson was inevitable as a consequence of his momentum in attempting to save the ball,” the KMI Panel explained. “The contact made was not reckless and below the threshold for a penalty.”
Yet the panel still 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 decision was correct under the current “clear and obvious” standard.
“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 black mark on his record, and the knowledge that the key decision that sparked his anger has now been judged wrong — just not wrong enough to change.
