While in the Europa League, Nottingham Forest subbed out injured Ola Aina for Oleksandr Zinchenko.
Uefa stunned clubs with a surprise announcement this month, revealing it had agreed an “amendment” to registry regulations.
New Liverpool hero signs shirts as he returns to football after 102 days out
The governing body announced clubs will be allowed the “temporary” replacement of one outfield player “with a long-term injury or illness.”
Uefa added: “The reasoning for the adaptation is to ensure that squad lists are not unfairly reduced and players are safeguarded from additional workload pressure.”
It remains to be seen whether Slot decides to recall Chiesa though.
Young centre-back Rhys Williams was also left out of Liverpool’s Champions League squad.
And he could get the nod if Slot feels his squad is light on defenders.
CHELSEA have made a last-ditch change to their UEFA squad ahead of their game against Bayern Munich tomorrow.
With a long-term injury to Dario Essugo, who is out for a minimum of 12 weeks with a thigh injury, the Blues have taken him down from their UEFA squad list on the UCL website.
The £18.5million midfielder had surgery after tearing a thigh muscle on international duty, in a major blow for Chelsea, who have now been left with a lack of cover for Moises Caicedo with Romeo Lavia also often injured.
Essugo has been replaced by loan signing Facundo Buonanotte in the UEFA list on the official site, who started the 2-2 draw away at Brentford on Saturday night, impressing Enzo Maresca on his debut.
Previously, they wouldn’t have been able to make the change, but can do so thanks to a new UEFA rule which was brought into action last week.
Buonanotte said when he signed: “It’s a great step in my career. I’ll get the opportunity to play in the Champions League for the first time, which will be a great challenge.”
So it was a shock when he was left off the UEFA A and B lists for Chelsea’s league phase fixtures, which begin in Bavaria on Wednesday, where they will face off against former striker Nicolas Jackson.
In a shock move, Uefa’s ruling executive committee announced it had agreed an “amendment” to regulations for the three club competitions.
Under the new rules, clubs are now allowed to make a “temporary” replacement of one outfield player with a long-term injury or illness” up until the sixth competition match day in December – when the Conference League initial phase will end.
Uefa said: “The reasoning for the adaptation is to ensure that squad lists are not unfairly reduced and players are safeguarded from additional workload pressure.”
Chelsea have become the first team to take advantage of the rule, while Federico Chiesa and Mathys Tel of Liverpool and Spurs remain out of their respective squad lists.
With a growing list of injured players at Stamford Bridge, which has already included Levi Colwill, Liam Delap and Cole Palmer this season, the Blues will be grateful to be able to call upon the likes of Facundo Buonanotte in the Champions League this season.
29. PSG record a seventh attempt of the game, five of which have been on target.
As for Inter, it’s just one wayward Francesco Acerbi effort so far for them.
From Dan King in Munich
As Paul Merson would say, only this time it’s probably true: game over.
PSG have been utterly dominant and are good value for their lead.They are superior in every department. Inter have barely laid a glove on them.
PSG’s full backs are giving them such a platform by pushing forward into midfield that you would hardly know Inter have five there.
And the PSG front three have produced, again.
PSG 2-0 Inter
25. Inter manage the game’s first corner, but that doesn’t count for much at the moment – particularly when the Parisians defend it so well.
It’s just not happening, not sticking, for the Italians at the moment. They simply must change something.
PSG 2-0 Inter
23. It’s a long, long way back for Inter now.
The last side to come back from a two-goal deficit to win the Champions League final was Liverpool in 2005.
But miracles such as Istanbul don’t happen every day. It’s unlikely that they even happen every 20 years.
PSG 2-0 Inter
20. Is that the Champions League won?!
Twenty minutes in and Paris Saint-Germain lead by two, and they are good value for such a margin.
It all stems from that long throw at the other end, which Willian Pacho does brilliantly to keep in play when others would have settled for an Inter corner.
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia takes over on the left, and he pushes on to find Ousmane Dembele. The forward then switches play to the right for Desire Doue to take aim just inside the area.
The teenager’s shot isn’t the best, but it it loops up off Federico Dimarco, who has turned his back on the effort, and beats Yann Sommer at the near post.
The French club now have one hand on the Champions League trophy!
But Inter head to Munich still thanking their old-timer for keeping their Champions League dream alive, desperate to be crowned Kings of Europe for the fourth time.
But that cute, near-post effort to get in front of Ronald Araujo and find Wojciech Szczesny’s top corner may well be his own personal crowning moment of a career that has seen it all.
Born in the outskirts of Milan in February 1988, Acerbi is now 90 minutes away from completing the circle by leading I Nerazzurri to European glory.
But his road to the San Siro – the site of his goal that will live long in the memory of all Inter fans – is far longer than the 15 miles from suburban Vizzolo Predabissi.
And it features battles on the pitch with the world’s best strikers but more importantly off the pitch, too, with cancer, depression and alcohol.
JOURNEYMAN CAREER
Acerbi started out in Serie C at Pavia in 2006 and even featured in the semi-professional Serie D on loan at Renate.
A loan to Spezia’s youth team followed before permanent spells at Reggina, Genoa and Chievo, where he eventually made his top-flight debut.
AC Milan came calling in 2012 and he was briefly team-mates with the likes of Robinho and Mario Balotelli.
Inter Milan hero Frattesi drops F-bomb live on TV after win over Barcelona leaving CBS Sports studio in hysterics
But after just six months of struggling for minutes, he was sold to Genoa, who immediately loaned him back to Chievo.
It wasn’t until Acerbi signed for Sassuolo in 2013 that he finally had stability, spending five seasons there before four at Lazio.
He initially joined Inter on loan in 2022-23 where he was reunited with ex-Lazio boss Simone Inzaghi and made the move permanent the following summer.
That transfer took his tally to 14 spells with ten different clubs.
FRAN THE MAN
Acerbi scored an all-important header against bitter rivals and former employers AC Milan in April 2024.
That helped his side to a 2-1 win which saw them confirmed as Serie A champions for the 20th time.
A year earlier, towards the end of his loan season, Acerbi came in for huge praise for his performance in the Champions League final.
However, Acerbi’s toughest challenges have come away from football.
His father died during his short stint at AC Milan, triggering depression which led to him turning and even relying on alcohol to numb the pain and suffering.
Then upon signing for Sassuolo in 2013 at the start of the next season, Acerbi was diagnosed with testicular cancer.
A regular health check-up flagged unusual blood test results and he immediately underwent surgery to remove the tumour.
But having returned to training and competitive action, he failed an anti-doping test.
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Acerbi kept Erling Haaland quiet in the 2023 Champions League finalCredit: Reuters
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His header against AC Milan helped secure Inter the Serie A titleCredit: Getty
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Acerbi’s journeyman career settled after he beat cancer twice at SassuoloCredit: Getty Images – Getty
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Acerbi got his kit off to make the Euro 2020 victory over EnglandCredit: Getty
Acerbi denied taking any banned performance-enhancing drugs and it transpired the irregular hormone levels were because the cancer had come back again.
As a result, the defender had two months of chemotherapy at the start of 2014.
But Acerbi actually credits the two bouts of cancer for “saving” him from the depression and alcoholism.
He candidly explained to La Repubblica in 2019: “After my father died, when I was playing for Milan, I hit rock bottom.
“It was as if I’d forgotten how to play, or why I was playing. I started drinking and, believe me, I’d drink anything.
“It might seem like a terrible paradox, but the cancer saved me. I had something new to fight against, a limit to overcome.
“It was as if I got to start life all over again and saw the world in a way I’d completely forgotten. I stopped being scared.
“I was thinking to myself, ‘What will you do if it comes back again?’ ‘I’ll face it again,’ I replied.
Symptoms of testicular cancer
The most common sign is a lump or swelling on one of your testicles, which is normally about the size of a pea.
Not all testicular lumps are cancerous, while only four per cent of scrotal lumps are, but you should still always get your GP to take a look.
Here are the signs to look out for:
A lump or swelling in the testicle
A heavy scrotum
A dull ache or sharp pain in the testicles and scrotum
A feeling of heaviness in the scrotum
A difference in the texture or increase in firmness of the testicle
A difference between one testicle and the other
To know if you have any signs of changes in your testicles, it’s important to know what feels normal.
It’s a good idea to have a hot shower before checking them, then gently roll your testicle between your thumb and finger.
Then repeat for the other testicle.
Repeat this every week so you get a feel for their shape and size.
“Chemotherapy was like stepping into a parallel world, the entrance to which is closer than you could possibly think, so you never leave it again. It’s a world of pain and of courage.
“I think having that illness improved me as a person, cancelling out remorse and regret.
“I became an observer of my surroundings. I eliminated the superfluous, the negative, but also the illusions. I stopped dreaming big and started to focus on simple targets.”
EURO HERO
Incredibly, Acerbi made his senior Italy international debut later in the same year he underwent the chemotherapy.
But by 2019, he had still only managed to add two further appearances – one in 2016, one in 2018 – before being brought back into the fold by Roberto Mancini.
And while Acerbi won’t go down as one of the all-time great Italian defenders with the likes of Paolo Maldini, Fabio Cannavaro, Leonardo Bonucci, Giorgio Chiellini et al, he was awarded the top Order of Merit in Italy after being part of the Euro 2020-winning squad.
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Francesco Acerbi has two children with Claudia ScarpariCredit: Instagram @claudiascarp
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The couple got married in January 2025Credit: Instagram
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Acerbi has tattoos across his torso, arms and legsCredit: Instagram @claudiascarp
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Claudia regularly attends Inter matches to cheer her husband onCredit: Instagram
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Acerbi opened up on his struggles with depression and alcohol after his father diedCredit: Instagram
He set up the extra-time winner against Austria in the round of 16 then was an unused sub in the quarters, semis and final, where the Azzurri beat England on penalties.
Acerbi, though, has not added to his 34 caps since 2023 and pulled out of the squad in March 2024 after allegations he made racist comments to Napoli’s Juan Jesus during a Serie A match earlier that month.
A Serie A sports judge dismissed the case, citing a lack of evidence, as Acerbi escaped punishment – a decision furious Napoli labelled “astonishing”.
BARCA DRAMA
Acerbi hit the headlines for all the right reasons, though, with his goal against Barcelona – four months on from marrying Claudia Scarpari, the mum of his two daughters.
Incredibly, that was his very first career goal in European football in his 66th appearance across the Champions League and Europa League.
To make the finish even more impressive and remarkable, the left-footed 6ft 4ins unit scored with his right foot.
So it was no wonder he ripped his famous black-and-blue shirt and then his underlayer off in sheer unbridled delirious delight to reveal his tattooed torso.
Acerbi’s many inkings will tell their own stories.
But the image of the seasoned and battle-scarred pensioner unsure how to celebrate his magic moment other than jumping gleefully on to his knees punctuates a truly turbulent tale of football with the most emphatic of exclamation marks.
Now can he write one more chapter in his rollercoaster novel at the Allianz Arena?
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He got in front of Ronald Araujo to fire past Wojciech SzczesnyCredit: AP
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His goal sparked wild scenes among his team-mates, coaches and fansCredit: Getty
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Acerbi soaked up the adulation from the adoring crowdCredit: AP
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Acerbi won the Coppa Italia in 2019 with Lazio then in 2023 with InterCredit: Instagram
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Will he add another tattoo to mark a famous victory in Munich?Credit: Instagram
We’ve all heard it. The derisory chant from opposition fans when one of the so-called ‘big guns’ is having an off day.
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Six English teams will qualify for next season’s Champions LeagueCredit: Getty
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Either Tottenham or Man Utd will earn Champions League qualification this season despite finishing 17th or 16th in the Premier LeagueCredit: Getty
For example, Southampton supporters had every right to aim it at the multi-billionaires of Manchester City last weekend, when they couldn’t find a way past the worst team in the Premier League.
Only now what was once a mildly amusing terrace jibe sums up perfectly what the leading club competition in the world has become. A joke.
Next season there will be a record SIX English teams in the Champions League.
Almost one third of the entire Premier League will be waved straight into the bizarre league phase by Uefa’s welcoming doormen at an empty small town disco on a wet Tuesday night.
Anyone can come in. From Liverpool who finished top, right down to hapless Tottenham or abject Manchester United hovering above the relegation zone.
It is time to officially ban the phrase ‘elite competition’ whenever the Champions League is mentioned on TV and radio or written in print.
There was a time when you had to win your domestic league to progress into the highest level of European football the following season.
From winning five Premier League games in a row, they went winless in the next five and couldn’t string a pass together.
They lag 20 POINTS behind the bona fide champions of England from Anfield and are fifth.
Don’t bet against them being in next season’s Champions League.
The constant tinkering and chiselling away at a once simple game has led to Uefa getting its knickers in a right old twist.
Fifth in this year’s Premier League grants a free pass into the treasure trove of the Champions League thanks to the coefficients which measure success where once it was about winning.
A whole page is devoted to thrill-a-minute ‘coefficients’ on the governing body’s website to explain how a system that would baffle Stephen Hawking’s much cleverer cousin actually works: “Uefa calculates the coefficient of each club each season based on the clubs’ results in the Uefa Champions League, Uefa Europa League and Uefa Conference League.
“The season coefficients from the five most recent seasons are used to rank the clubs for seeding purposes (sporting club coefficient).
“In addition, the season coefficients from the ten most recent seasons are used to calculate revenue club coefficients for revenue distribution purposes only.”
And that’s just the overview.
There’s a gag in there somewhere about how many coefficients does it take to ruin a game of football? Only I can’t see a funny punch line.
There was a time back when the world was black and white in the 1950s when two imaginative French journalists took inspiration from South America and came up with the idea of the best clubs from each country competing for a trophy on our continent.
Ironically, it wasn’t called the Champions League back then. It was the plain old European Cup. A cup fought over by teams in Europe. Simple eh?
Liverpool’s first steps into the European Cup came in 1964, our sole representatives having won the league the previous season under Bill Shankly.
Next season they share the honour with five other English teams and some of them are pretty ordinary.
If Spurs win the Europa League and follow it up by winning the Champions League next year, the champions of Europe will come from a team currently 17th in England’s top division.
You can argue it won’t happen. Yet somehow a side which has lost more league games than it has won this season is in a European final next week.
That’s cup football for you and it’s a wonderful lottery. Qualification for the Champions League is not. It’s a boring carve up.
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The top five teams in the Premier League will qualify for the Champions League due to European coefficientsCredit: AFP
