World Cup quarter-final suspensions: Who's banned, who's been booked, who could miss semis?

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As the

World Cup

final edges closer for the eight nations still standing, so too does the possibility that some of the tournament’s brightest stars could miss the semi-finals through suspension should their country progress.

Suspensions will likely be at the forefront of each manager’s mind heading into the last eight, with 20 players walking the disciplinary tightrope ahead of the quarter-finals of this summer’s tournament.

Due to an extra round of games at this summer’s tournament,

FIFA

has adjusted its yellow card laws accordingly. In previous years, any player who received two yellow cards across any match before the semi-final would receive an automatic one-game suspension.

FIFA’s new regulations, however, see yellow cards wiped twice throughout the tournament: once after the group stage and the other after the quarter-finals. As such, any player who has been shown a yellow card in any knockout game must now avoid a booking in their quarter-final matchup should they wish to be available for selection for the semi-final.

Mirror Football

takes a look at who is walking the suspension tightrope for each quarter-finalist.

Morocco

perhaps looked the most comfortable in their last 16 matchup, easily brushing

Canada

aside 3-0 to eliminate the host nation.

A second-half brace from Azzedine Ounahi was capped off by a 98th-minute strike from Soufiane Rahimi to deliver the coup de grace to Jesse Marsch’s side and book their place in the last eight for the second tournament running.

France’s

last 16 matchup was not so simple, as Didier Deschamps’ side squeezed past

Paraguay

1-0 thanks to

Kylian Mbappe’s

converted spot kick. Despite the one-goal margin, the scoreline was perhaps flattering for the South Americans, as

Les Bleus

dominated proceedings and never truly looked in trouble.

, alongside England, has the most players at risk, with five having already picked up a yellow card during the knockout stages.

Issa Diop was booked in their Round of 32 matchup versus the

Netherlands

, while Redouane Halhal, Achraf Hakimi, Azzedine Ounahi and Bilal El-Khannouss were all cautioned against Canada in the Round of 16.

While

France

escaped unscathed in their win over

Sweden

in the Round of 32, tensions boiled over in their matchup against Paraguay, with Bradley Barcola, Manu Kone and Michael Olise all shown yellow cards.

As such, some of the tournament’s standout names could be set to miss the semi-final should they be shown a yellow card and their side progress.

England’s

win over

Mexico

at the Azteca was one of the nation’s greatest in recent memory, the victory did not come without its issues. Four players were cautioned in the high-stakes matchup, as

Declan Rice

, Marc Guehi, Nico O’Reilly and

Jordan

Henderson were all shown yellow cards.

The foursome, therefore, joined

Jude Bellingham

on the suspension tightrope, who picked up a booking in England’s Round of 32 victory over

DR Congo

.

As such, England have five players at risk of suspension ahead of the clash with

Norway

, though

Jordan Henderson

is not expected to feature for the Three Lions again this tournament due to injury.

Jarell Quansah was shown a straight red card for a challenge on Jesus Gallardo against Mexico, and will therefore miss the quarter-final against Norway. He is the only player currently banned for the quarter-finals.

Norway overcame

Brazil

in a David-versus-Goliath last-16 matchup, with the five-time champions falling to a side that had never progressed past the Round of 16.

A brace from

Erling Haaland

was enough to eliminate Carlo Ancelotti’s side, with not a single Norway player being shown a yellow card.

Antonio Nusa did, however, pick up a booking in his side’s Round of 32 win over the

Ivory Coast

, six minutes after scoring Norway’s opener. He is the sole Norwegian at risk of suspension due to accumulated yellow cards.

Luis de la Fuente’s side left things late against

Portugal

, as substitute Mikel Merino scored the only goal in La Roja’s narrow victory in the Round of 16.

Spain

are the only side in the quarter-finals who are yet to concede a goal at this year’s tournament, with their disciplinary record almost as flawless as their defensive one.

La Roja survived the Round of 32 matchup versus

Austria

unscathed, with substitute Ferran Torres the only player to pick up a booking deep into stoppage time against

Following

Belgium’s

dramatic comeback victory in the Round of 32 versus

Senegal

, easier things followed as Rudi Garcia’s side comfortably dispatched the

USA

4-1, sending the hosts home with ease.

Brandon Mechele was the only Belgian to be booked versus Senegal, and he remains the only player to have been shown a yellow card following a disciplined display versus the USA.

Switzerland

escaped unscathed in their 2-0 Round of 32 win versus

Algeria

, though three players were shown yellow cards in their penalty shootout victory over

Colombia

120 minutes was not enough to separate the sides, and a 4-3 win in the shootout saw the Swiss book their spot in the last eight.

Granit Xhaka

, Denis Zakaria and Miro Muheim all had their names taken by the referee, and the Swiss could be facing a semi-final without their captain should he be shown another yellow card and they progress.

Argentina’s

bid to defend their World Cup title may not be going as smoothly as Lionel Scaloni would have liked, but La Albiceleste have proved they will not vanquish their title without a fight.

Extra time was needed for the South Americans to overcome

Cape Verde

in the Round of 32, before an unprecedented three-goal comeback versus

Egypt

in the last 16. Scaloni’s side were on the brink of elimination in the 79th minute before goals from Cristian Romero,

Lionel Messi,

and a 93rd-minute winner from Enzo Fernandez sealed a comeback that can rightly stake its claim for one of the best in World Cup history.

Gonzalo Montiel is the only Argentine player to be shown a yellow card across the two games, despite the dramatic nature of both encounters. As such,

Argentina

,

Belgium

, Spain and Norway are all vying for the knockout stage’s best disciplinary record, with only one player apiece at risk of suspension.