Liverpool supporters have been left outraged after FIFA informed their club that they will be unable to pick their Brazilian players this weekend.
The Brazilian FA have asked FIFA to invoke a five-day rule meaning eight Premier League stars will be unavailable for selection this weekend.
The Reds are one of five clubs from the top-flight set to be affected by the move, which will also affect Manchester United in next week’s Champions League.
As a result of the request by the Brazil FA, Jurgen Klopp will be without Alisson Becker, Roberto Firmino and Fabinho for the trip to Leeds United on Sunday.
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A collective stance was taken by clubs last month that they would not allow players to represent their national side in this current international break if fixtures were taking place in countries on the government's red-list.
Everton, though, have escaped punishment and Richarlison will be available for the club’s game against Burnley on Monday.
That is because the Blues have a good relationship with the Brazilian FA and the fact Richarlison represented his nation in both the Copa America and the Olympics this summer.
But clubs from the Premier League are now feeling the force of that stance, but the whole episode has left Liverpool fans angered.
Speaking on the issue last month, Reds boss Klopp said : “If you come back from a red list country, you have to quarantine for 10 days in a hotel – not a hotel of your choice, a hotel somebody tells you [to go to], next to the airport or whatever,” he told reporters on Friday.
“It’s not even close to being a spa hotel, it’s eating and waiting and sleeping and stuff like this.
“As the clubs, we cannot do that. Not only because we play games in that time when they come back, but without being positive [for COVID-19], they lose 10 days of training.
“In 10 days – you can ask whoever you want: a doctor, a sports scientist – without any chance of moving, you lose muscle. That’s how it is, atrophy.
“Then you come back and it’s not only 10 days, you have to start training, you have to do different stuff, and it’s a real risk for the boys, then, if they have to play three, four, five days after 10 days’ quarantine.
“So that’s the problem we had. It’s not that we said ‘we do it like this’, it’s just the government didn’t give an exemption for football players – even when they are fully vaccinated – so the situation is like it is.
"We cannot change it, but then [if it changes] then, of course, the players can go.”
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