Liverpool trigger emergency UEFA rule just days before Galatasaray clash

They face the Turkish giants on Tuesday night

The Reds made an electric start to their 2025/26 European campaign last week, as club captain Virgil Van Dijk scored a last gasp winner to help Liverpool to a 3-2 victory over Diego Simeone's Atletico Madrid.

Paddy Power Offer: 50/1 on either USA or Europe to win The Ryder Cup
18+ Be Gamble Aware

In the weeks before the Atletico clash, Liverpool manager Arne Slot came under fire from a section of Reds' supporters for his decision to omit Federico Chiesa from his side's 25 player squad for the Champions League's opening round.

Many had feared that Chiesa’s opportunities to get regular playtime ahead of the World Cup would be significantly cutback by his exclusion form the squad.

The former Fiorentina man may now have been handed an unexpected opportunity to return Europe's premier football competition.

As announced earlier this month, the new update relates to UEFA’s strict 25-man squad rules, whereby clubs must name just 25 players to call on during a Champions League campaign.

UEFA announced: “The Executive Committee approved an amendment to the 2025/26 UEFA men’s club competitions’ regulations to admit the temporary replacement of a maximum of one outfield player with long-term injury or illness during the league phase until matchday 6 included.

“The reasoning for the adaptation is to ensure that squad lists are not unfairly reduced and players are safeguarded from additional workload pressure.”

The announcement makes clear that if a player suffers a serious injury during the first six fixtures of the competition, they can be replaced in the squad.

This ultimately means that the those 25-man squads are not final.

Earlier this week, another of the Reds' Italian stars, Giovanni Leoni, picked up an unfortunate ACL injury that is set to rule him out for the rest of the season.

The injury, although disappointing for both the player himself and Slot, may have opened the door for Chiesa.

Speaking to reporters this week, Slot confirmed that the club were making enquiries into whether it is possible to replace Leoni with Chiesa in his squad.

The dutchman said: "That is not something I do myself, there are other people doing this. But if I'm informed correctly, if a player has a longer than two-month injury, you are able to replace him. That's what they've told me.

"We have to see if it's true or not, but other people are looking into that."

Despite being offered limited opportunities to start games for Liverpool, Chiesa has made a number of vital contributions already this season.

He was instrumental in constructing Hugo Ekitike's 85th minute winner against Southampton last week, and scored a brilliant goal to help the Reds beat Bournemouth on the Premier League opening night in August.

This 'impressive' smartwatch that rivals Apple discounted to just £21

An impressive smart watch that's been compared to Apple has been given a huge discount for a limited time.

The TRAUSI Smart Watch has been reduced by 82%, with its price dropping from £129.99 to just £20.99 on Amazon.

It features a range of functions, including Bluetooth calling, message notifications, heart rate/sleep monitoring, fitness tracking and timer capabilities, with 120 workout modes.

One review reads: "It looks just like an Apple Watch and works just like it. It can do all what an Apple Watch can do at a cheaper cost."

This article contains affiliate links. We may earn a commission on any sales generated from it.