UEFA are set to investigate Martin Keown's role in the dismissal of Roma captain Francesco Totti amid accusations of cheating against the Arsenal defender.
Keown is not facing any official inquiry as yet, but UEFA have confirmed they will review the centre-back's conduct in Totti's sending-off at Highbury last night.
This will form part of the disciplinary hearing scheduled on March 21st to discuss for how long Totti, who is automatically suspended for his team's final group game against Ajax two days earlier, should be banned.
It could lead to action being taken against Keown, who was accused by Roma coach Fabio Capello of being a "fantastic actor", is deemed to have acted unprofessionally.
Keown was floored during a confrontation with Totti during the 1-1 draw at Highbury, although the Roma captain insisted he had made no contact with the defender's face.
Capello admitted his striker had "brushed Keown's face with his hand" but insisted there had be no elbow involved which could have injured the Arsenal centre-back.
A UEFA spokesman revealed: "We have received the reports from the referee and the UEFA delegate, and have opened a disciplinary case that will be heard on Friday, March 21st.
"Francesco Totti will miss Roma's next match in the competition as there is no right of appeal against a red card in the Champions League.
"However, should the disciplinary body take any further action against him, then there is the possibility of lodging an appeal.
"As part of the disciplinary case, video evidence will be reviewed if anything happened which the match officials did not see.
"If it can be seen that Martin Keown did something to break the rules, then it would be possible to open a case against him as well. That is still only a hypothetical situation."
Newcastle duo Alan Shearer and Craig Bellamy both faced suspensions in the tournament earlier this season when UEFA acted after reviewing match incidents.
Keown will insist that he was the innocent victim rather than the perpetrator, although Totti maintained after the game: "I didn't touch him.
"For 10 minutes before that, Keown had been kicking me and I told the referee but he didn't do anything about it. In the incident, I never made contact with his face. He just went down."
PA