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Liverpool's preparations for its Champions League encounter with Eintracht Frankfurt were plunged into chaos when its flight to Germany was postponed by nearly four hours on Tuesday.
The Reds found themselves stuck at Liverpool John Lennon Airport after the aircraft they were due to board for Wednesday's fixture against the Bundesliga outfit encountered technical problems.
The departure finally occurred from Merseyside just before 8 pm, with Liverpool forced to miss the customary pre-match press conference that had been arranged to take place at the Deutsche Bank Arena in Frankfurt at 6:30 pm UK time, with Arne Slot and Dominik Szoboszlai having been due to speak to the media.
By failing to appear at the conference held at the stadium, the Reds - who are seeking to prevent a fifth straight loss for the first time since 1953 - may now face sanctions from UEFA for violating Article 48 of the tournament's regulations.
The rule stipulates: "The clubs must arrange for their teams to arrive on-site by the evening before the match concerned at the latest, and in time to fulfil their media obligations the day before the match."
The ultimate verdict will be reached by a disciplinary panel should the UEFA match delegate opt to reference the matter in their official report.
Nevertheless, given Liverpool bore no responsibility for the technical complications, it appears doubtful there will be any repercussions for the Anfield outfit.
"No, it will not impact the build-up to tomorrow's game," declared Reds head coach Slot, speaking before the flight ultimately took off. "We have trained over here at the AXA (Training Centre).
"Normally we would have gone to Frankfurt a few hours earlier, now we are a few hours later. But, no, that can never be an excuse for the game tomorrow."
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Liverpool is aiming to end a run of four straight defeats as it faces Frankfurt later, with the Reds currently on its worst run of losses since 2014. Another defeat in Germany would see them match an unwanted 72-year record.
"The aim if you play for Liverpool, if you wear this shirt, is to win every single game," Slot said.
"So, if we win seven in a row, how we started the season, then we want to win the next three. We didn't. Now we've lost the last four.
"So now, of course we want to see Liverpool winning again. But that is not different when you lost four in a row or you won four in a row - it is just what is expected of you if you play for Liverpool."
* An AI tool was used to add an extra layer to the editing process for this story. You can read the original story in the Liverpool ECHO by clicking here.
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