Alisson TWICE sent off for Brazil and TWICE saved thanks to VAR

Alisson was in the thick of the action for Brazil on Thursday evening, twice receiving a red card and twice having it overturned in a drama-filled 1-1 draw with Ecuador.

The Selecao have already secured their place in the 2022 World Cup, with this month’s fixtures acting as preparation for the tournament at the end of the year.

Alisson remained as Tite’s No. 1 while Fabinho was forced to sit out of Thursday’s clash due to a one-game suspension, a path his Liverpool teammate was almost left to face himself.

It came in what was a rollercoaster 90 minutes that saw two goals, seven yellow cards, two red cards, another two red cards that were rescinded after review and two Ecuador penalties that were ruled out after the referee consulted the monitor.

Got all that?

It all started with Casemiro putting Brazil ahead in the fifth minute, with Ecuador goalkeeper Alexander Dominguez then sent off for a reckless karate-kick challenge on Matheus Cunha that made contact with his neck.

Brazil’s Emerson Royal then followed with a red card of his own thanks to a silly second yellow – and then it was Alisson‘s turn to be in the spotlight.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pCuZfmCQb6s

The Liverpool ‘keeper dished out his own wild high foot when clearing the ball outside of his area in the 25th-minute to make contact with Enner Valencia, a straight red card.

But the referee was sent to the pitchside monitor and downgraded his initial red to a yellow card as Alisson first struck the ball.

Ecuador would equalise in the second half, but when the game was in its final moments Alisson was shown yet another red card for two yellow card offences.

A penalty was awarded due to Alisson being deemed to have made head-high contact with his punched clearance.

And once again, VAR stepped in and the referee would then rule that Alisson had in fact made a play on the ball to save his graces, but on another day it could have been a different story.

In the end, both teams would finish with 10-men and with a goal apiece, and Alisson remained on the field for the entirety of it on what was a wild night in Quito.

Fabinho will be expected to receive his first minutes of the break when Brazil take on Paraguay on Wednesday, while Alisson could be rotated out for Man City‘s Ederson.