Nervous 10 walk final ban tightrope

Chelsea and Liverpool stars were today warned there will no reprieve if a yellow card tonight forces them to miss the European Cup Final. UEFA confirmed any player receiving their third or fifth booking of the tournament will receive a onematch ban.

This leaves 10 players, including defenders Ricardo Carvalho, William Gallas and Glen Johnson, walking on eggshells at Anfield, desperate to avoid the disappointment suffered by Manchester United's Roy Keane and Paul Scholes in 1999. It was a similar story for Juventus' Pavel Nedved in 2003, whose booking meant he missed the Final against AC Milan.

UEFA have relaxed the rules since 1999 so a player needs a minimum of three cards - rather than two - to be banned, but there is still no card amnesty after the group stage.

All this season's Euro bookings stand, as Liverpool's Xabi Alonso found when he was cautioned for the third time in the first leg at Stamford Bridge. He can at least be sure he is available should they reach Istanbul, unlike these nine nervous individuals:

CHELSEA

Mateja Kezman: Chelsea's European bad boy, having already served one suspension for reaching three yellow cards. His caution in the first leg against Liverpool means he is in danger of another ban by hitting five for the tournament.
Ricardo Carvalho: Booked in the group-stage victory over Porto last September and again in the home clash with Bayern Munich in the quarter-final first leg.
William Gallas: His disciplinary record mirrors that of Carvalho's. The Frenchman's cards also came in the matches against Porto and Bayern.
Glen Johnson: The defender will now be regretting his needless caution for time-wasting in the dying minutes of the 4-2 win against Barcelona. Also booked at CSKA Moscow.
Alexei Smertin: The Russian is unlikely to start but is another player on two bookings, which were both picked up in the group matches against Porto.

LIVERPOOL

Jamie Carragher: Despite highly competitive matches with Bayer Leverkusen, Juventus and Chelsea, he has escaped bookings in the knockout stage. His cards are carried over from group matches against Deportivo and Olympiakos.
Steve Finnan: Another player who got stuck into Olympiakos, the defender was also cautioned against Juventus in Turin.
Igor Biscan: Clobbered Frank Lampard in the second half of the first leg at Stamford Bridge to add to the yellow card he received against Deportivo last November.
Stephen Warnock: It would be heart-breaking for the 23-year-old if yellow cards at Olympiakos and Monaco cost him now.
Dietmar Hamann: The German is just back from injury but has two yellow cards from the games against Deportivo and Monaco.