Liverpool midfielder fined after 'misplacing' boots ahead of Champions League clash

Pep Lijnders has revealed Stefan Bajcetic will be fined roughly £400 after he reported late to Red Bull Salzburg's pre-match training session.

Liverpool loanee Bajcetic, who is spending the season with the Austrian outfit, had problems finding his boots and was therefore late to Monday afternoon's session. "It will be around €500 (£416.72) the day before the game," said Lijnders in Monday's pre-match press conference, confirming the time-keeping mistake would cost the Spaniard.

Austrian publication Salzburg 24, present at the training facility on Monday, reports Bajcetic's blunder was received in good faith by his team-mates as they report that "the entire team was visibly happy and politely thanked the 19-year-old" for a fine that will be used for a team trip at some point in the future.

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Bajcetic joined Salzburg on a season-long loan in August after an injury-riddled 18 months at Liverpool. The Spanish youth international emerged as a key player for the Reds in the second half of the 2022/23 season but was limited to just one start last term as he battled a serious calf injury. His move to the Austrian outfit saw him reunite with Lijnders, Vitor Matos, Andreas Kornmayer and former academy team-mate Bobby Clark.

However, he was left on the bench for Tuesday's Champions League clash against Brest, which finished in a shock 4-0 win for the away side thanks to goals from Mahdi Camara, Mathias Pereira Lage and a brace from Abdallah Sima. Bajcetic did get on the pitch despite starting the match on the bench, replacing Lucas Gourna-Douath in the 77th minute with the score already at 4-0.