Liverpool's ticket allocation for visit to Man City is SLASHED
Liverpool’s ticket allocation for April visit to Man City is SLASHED by 20% amid tension between Premier League rivals after a 15-year-old girl was left ‘scarred for life’ by a pint cup filled with coins thrown from away end at the Etihad Stadium
- Liverpool will receive 2,400 tickets for the April 1 match – down from 3,000
- It comes after numerous incidents of crowd trouble at previous fixtures
- A teenage girl was struck by a pint cup full of coins thrown by Liverpool fans
Liverpool will have their ticket allocation cut by 20 per cent when they travel to the Etihad Stadium to face fierce rivals Manchester City.
Sportsmail understands that – in the wake of numerous incidents of trouble which included a 15-year-old girl being left ‘scarred for life’ – safety officials have decided to act ahead of the April 1 clash.
They have told City that Liverpool should be given 2,400 seats – a substantial drop from the 3,000 they would normally receive.
The move is not likely to go down well on Merseyside and may do little to calm the increasing tension between the two clubs.
While City declined to comment, it is thought that they have little option other than to abide by the recommendations of the safety advisory group, a collection of officials that includes the emergency services and which issues the certificate which permits matches to be played.
Liverpool fans have seen their allocation cut by 20 per cent for their trip to the Etihad Stadium
It comes after a 15-year-old girl was left ‘scarred for life’ after a pint cup weighted with coins was thrown from the Liverpool section onto home fans at the Carabao Cup tie in December
She was injured by a hard plastic pint cup filled with coins and liquid thrown from the away end
That group has decided to act after December’s Carabao Cup clash saw the teenaged City fan struck by a pot weighted with coins that had been hurled from the visiting area.
A harrowing picture of the girl’s bloodstained blue-and-white scarf later emerged on social media in what was the latest in a number of incidents at games between the two clubs amid a growing toxicity.
Last month, this newspaper revealed that City were considering bringing in netting to surround away fans at the Etihad on a ‘case-by-case’ basis. That netting will not be in place for next month’s clash but remains under consideration.
Regardless, cutting the visitors’ allocation by 600 is a significant act and one which highlights the issues between the two clubs who went toe-to-toe in title races in three of the previous four seasons.
Ahead of the Carabao Cup match both clubs appealed for calm. However, at a safety group meeting following the fixture it was disclosed that more than 50 reports of missiles being launched from the away end were made.
A 53-year-old, believed to be a City fan, was hospitalised after being assaulted outside the ground while disabled Liverpool fans were racially abused with a man arrested.
There have been a growing number of incidents involving fans at Liverpool vs Man City games
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp (left) and his City counterpart Pep Guardiola (right)
Pep Guardiola claimed he was targeted by coins when City lost at Anfield in October, and City said their team bus was also attacked, with damage to the windscreen pictured above (right)
City fans were accused of trashing the Anfield away end and singing Hillsborough chants
Previous matches have also faced issues. In 2018, Merseyside Police failed to make a single arrest after City’s coach was hit by bottles, bricks and flares ahead of a Champions League quarter-final.
In 2021, City’s bench complained they had been spat at during a match at Anfield while, at the last clash on Merseyside in October of last year, City manager Pep Guardiola complained that coins had been thrown at him.
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