If the Reds fail to get permission, Matip could miss as many as six games and may not don his club’s jersey until they take on Tottenham Hotspur on February 11 if Cameroon make it to the final of the tournament.

However, last year the 25-year-old made it clear that he no longer wanted to be selected by Cameroon and was subsequently not included in their AFCON squad.

But, even though Matip last featured for Cameroon in September 2015, he was included in a preliminary squad for the continental showpiece, taking place in Gabon.

In a statement, a FIFA spokesperson told AFP that Liverpool should read article five of the governing body’s rules, which states that “a player who has been called up by his association for one of its representative teams is, unless otherwise agreed, not entitled to play for his club during the period for which he has been released, plus an additional period of five days”.

Responding to FIFA’s rules, Liverpool believes “that the player should be available for club football during the period of the competition and will continue to work for a speedy and unambiguous resolution”.

However, the FIFA official issued a warning, saying: “FIFA also indicated that any potential violation of the relevant rules would be the subject of an investigation by its disciplinary commission.”