Soccer: Reds must wait to discover Euro rivals

Liverpool hope to find out today if they can begin finalising plans for a Champions League trip to Israel.

Maccabi Haifa looked to have secured a third qualifying round tie against the Reds after a 5-0 aggregate victory over Finnish side FC Haka in the last round.

However, next Wednesday’s first leg in Tel Aviv has been thrown into chaos after it emerged that Haifa fielded an ineligible player in Wednesday’s 4-0 second leg victory over Haka.

Former Wimbledon star Walid Badir played in that game despite not having completed a two-match suspension, held over from last season’s UEFA Cup.

Badir had been one of two Haifa players sent off in the first leg of a tie with Vitesse Arnhem on September 11 last year.

Haifa won the second leg a fortnight later 2-1, but went out of the tournament.

Liverpool spokesman Ian Cotton released a statement saying: ‘‘We have been contacted by UEFA who have informed us that Maccabi Haifa are the subject of a disciplinary hearing this afternoon, the outcome of which may have a bearing on the result of the Champions League qualifier against FC Haka.’’

Haifa would have three days to appeal if the decision went against them, and that would throw Liverpool’s preparation for the tie into disarray.

Haifa believed that he was only banned for one match this season and he did not play in last week’s first leg 1-0 win in Finland.

Now the error could result in them being thrown out of the competition at a midday hearing today, and Haka being awarded the second leg 3-0, which would put them into the final qualifier and see them facing Liverpool next week instead.

The shock has caused uproar in Haifa, and their president Yaacoo Shahar has said: ‘‘We have a letter from the Israeli FA after the Vitesse match which said we could not play him for two games.

‘‘We left him out of the second leg against Vitesse and also the first leg against Haka, so we don’t see what we have done wrong.

‘‘I don’t know what the big fuss is about. If there is any blame, it is to the Israeli FA not us, because we now have a letter from UEFA saying he has not completed his suspension.

‘‘I now believe there are more problems and UEFA have contacted us. But we will contest any decision to throw us out.’’

The irony is that Badir broke a bone in his arm in Wednesday’s match, played less than an hour and will now be out for months.