What are the suspension rules for the UCL semi-finals? Do yellow cards count?

Real Madrid’s Toni Kroos was booked in the first leg against Bayern Munich. Is he walking a disciplinary tightrope?

Paris Saint-Germain, Borussia Dortmund, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich are just 90 minutes away from the Champions League final and players on all four teams can breathe a huge sigh of relief when it comes to fear of missing the showpiece game at Wembley due to suspension…kind of.

UCL suspension rules changed after quarter-finals

Disciplinary regulations for the latter knockout rounds changed following the conclusion of the quarter-finals, which meant that every player started the semi-finals with a clean slate with regard to cards against their name.

So while Madrid’s Dani Carvajal missed the first leg of the semi-final against Bayern after being yellow carded in the second leg of the quarter-final against Manchester City, no player is in danger of incurring a similar ban now that the penultimate round is underway.

The only way a player can miss the Champions League final

Even if Toni Kroos, one of seven players who was booked in last week’s first legs, receives another yellow card in this week’s second leg, he will not be banned for the final, which will be played in London on 1 June.

The only way a player can miss the final through suspension is if they are shown a red card - either directly or as a result of two bookings within the same game - in the second leg of the semi-finals.

Among the players who have missed previously Champions League finals because of an accumulation of yellow cards - under the old rules - are Paul Scholes and Roy Keane of Manchester United in 1999, Barcelona’s Dani Alves in 2009 and Xabi Alonso of Real Madrid in 2014.