LIVERPOOL CONFIDENTIAL: Anfield Road Stand upper tier finally open for Man United visit as capacity reaches 57,000, Andy Robertson on course for January return and Klopp’s kids head to Belgium for Europa dead rubber

• The upper tier of the new Anfield Road Stand will finally open four months late  
• Original contractors were into administration, causing Liverpool the delay 
• On a packed train, how DO you ask a celebrity to move from a seat you have reserved? It’s All Kicking Off 

Four months later than hoped, Liverpool will finally open the top tier of the new Anfield Road Stand for this weekend’s crunch fixture with Manchester United – with Mail Sport given a behind-the-scenes tour of the development project.

It resembled more of a building site with just over a week until the first match, but Liverpool’s stadium staff have been working around the clock to get the work done. 

Upon leaving Goodison Park at around 11.30pm on Thursday, the lights were still on around the construction offices.

Liverpool were originally hoping to open the new stand for the first home game of the season against Bournemouth – having asked to play an away match in the opening weekend – but that date was pushed back several times due to complications.

The biggest setback came when Buckingham Group, the original contractors, went into financial administration. It left Liverpool scrambling to find another constructor and Rayner Rowen stepped up to complete the works.

The upper tier of the new Anfield Road Stand (pictured) will finally open when Liverpool host Manchester United in the Premier League this Sunday

A view from the top corner of the newly-finished stand which will raise capacity to 57,000

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Buckingham’s contract was not given to them lightly, with Liverpool conducting research into some of their other projects first, which included work at Brighton’s Amex Stadium, Brentford’s Gtech Community Stadium and a new stand at The Oval cricket ground in south London.

The Russian war on Ukraine plus Brexit led to bigger costs for timber and Buckingham Group also failed to complete works on developments to Fulham’s Craven Cottage, with the new Riverside Stand going way over budget and works taking longer than expected to complete.

Rayner Rowen parked their construction site at the top of the car park that adorns Stanley Park and slowly installed new seats and cladding to take Anfield’s capacity to 61,000, though the true attendance figure will fall just shy of that due to away end segregation.

There will be around 57,000 in for the United fixture, all going well, with the stand opening in a phased approach. 

Liverpool are hoping to now focus on the hospitality aspect of the Anfield Road Stand, which will take the capacity to north of 60,000.

All of this is subject to a test event on Monday night, with the club hoping more than 7,000 fans attend. Season-ticket holders and members were given the chance to look around the new stand and Jurgen Klopp will do a question and answer session on the pitch.

Fans at the test event will be asked to use – and flush – the toilets to check plumbing works. It is similar to when the new Wembley opened, when there was a mass bathroom visit as all of the 2,618 toilets had to be tested. 

The exterior view of the newly-expanded stand which will greet fans at the game on Sunday

Liverpool were delayed in opening the new section after the original contractors went bust

There are multiple refreshment outlets in the new tier, including central, square-shaped bars.

CEO Billy Hogan feared the developments would not be completed until the New Year. 

So the club see it as an ‘early Christmas present’ to them and fans that a higher capacity will be reached for big games against United, Arsenal and Newcastle plus a Carabao Cup quarter-final.

‘It’s really been challenging,’ says Paul Cuttill, head of stadium operations at Anfield. ‘When Buckingham went into administration, it really changed the course of the programme. I’m really proud of every member of staff and Rayner Rowen to get us where we are now.

‘Billy said it was not likely until 2024, so it is a bit of an early Christmas present really to get us in for the United game. It’s been a lot of hard work and sheer persistence. 

‘We took the decision to do this in phases – open the upper tier now, phase two is getting the hospitality bits open.’

Liverpool officials described the newly-opened upper tier as an ‘early Christmas present’

The second phase of the stand’s redevelopment project will see hospitality areas added

The setbacks, of course, have led to budgets being altered – but Liverpool are not yet clear on the true nature of the financial cost. 

The biggest cost could be the time it has taken, with Liverpool missing out on an estimated £750,000 per match when the stand is not fully open.

Ultimately, opening the new project for the first game of the season was seen as highly ambitious by the club – and it is certainly not Liverpool’s fault that the date has been pushed back. 

With a nearly-full Anfield for the visit of United, the wait will feel worthwhile.

ROBERTSON SET FOR NEW YEAR RETURN

Andy Robertson is on schedule to be fit to return to first-team action next month, with the full-back already back on the training pitch running as he steps up his recovery from a dislocated shoulder suffered when on camp with Scotland.

Robertson, 29, has missed eight Premier League games for Liverpool since his injury, with Kostas Tsimikas deputising admirably. 

But Robertson is now making daily progress at the AXA Training Centre, split between treatment and strength work on the injured shoulder.

The Scotsman is not yet involved in contact training but is doing running work on the grass for fitness. 

With it being a shoulder injury, Robertson could get back to general fitness work fairly early but cannot risk his arm getting clattered in a 50-50 on the training pitch.

Andy Robertson’s return from a shoulder injury should offer Jurgen Klopp a January boost

WILLIAMS RECALL TO EASE DEFENSIVE BURDEN 

Rhys Williams has found opportunities hard to come by on loan at Aberdeen

Liverpool are considering recalling Rhys Williams from his loan at Aberdeen after the defender has failed to make a single appearance in the Scottish Premiership since joining in June, according to sources north of the border.

Williams, 22, has made 19 appearances for Liverpool, including a flurry of starts during an injury crisis in 2020-21 and has spent time on loan at Swansea and Blackpool since. 

But the Reds are set to take stock in January of their defensive options after a long-term injury to Joel Matip.

It could see Williams recalled to help ease the burden on the likes of Jarell Quansah and Joe Gomez, who are deputising well in central defensive positions, though he could be loaned out again.

Liverpool have not ruled out making a move for a defender in the transfer market. Any deal could come in the form of a short-term, cheap move – but they could decide that the form of young Quansah is enough to convince them not to rush into any decision.

A new long-term central defender has long been thought as top of their wish-list in 2024 after overhauling the midfield last summer.

SPECIAL SHIRT FOR UNITED CLASH

Liverpool will wear a new shirt for the Manchester United clash this weekend, with the special-edition jersey emblazoning the ‘Futuremakers’ logo, which is the charity arm of principal partner Standard Chartered.

‘Futuremakers’ is part of the bank’s global initiative to fight economic inequality. The programme empowers under-served young people around the world to shape their futures by learning new skills, to improve their chances of getting a job or starting their own businesses.

Liverpool’s women’s team wore the shirts in their 1-1 draw with Bristol City on Sunday.

The shirts will be signed by players and then auctioned before Christmas to raise money for charity.

Liverpool’s women’s team wore the ‘Futuremakers’ shirts in Sunday’s game with Bristol City

GORDON’S A FEEL-GOOD STORY 

It was a frustrating week for Liverpool’s academy in which the Under 21s were well beaten at Bradford in the Bristol Street Motors Trophy on Tuesday and the Under 18s saw their FA Youth Cup match at Fleetwood postponed due to a waterlogged pitch on Sunday.

But the week ahead could be one of the proudest in the club’s history. Many youngsters are set to travel to Brussels for the first-team’s Europa League dead-rubber against Union Saint-Gilloise, played at Anderlecht’s Lotto Park.

Ben Doak and Jarell Quansah will be expected to start, while there could also be game-time for James McConnell, Conor Bradley and Luke Chambers. 

The biggest talking point could be young winger Kaide Gordon.

The 19-year-old became Liverpool’s youngest-ever FA Cup scorer in 2022 when he netted in front of the Kop against Shrewsbury, and made his Premier League debut versus Brentford the following week. But his progress since then has been hampered by injury.

Gordon was diagnosed with adolescent musculoskeletal issues – the medical phrase for ‘growing pains’ and did not play football for more than a year. But the winger is said to be in good health now and could feature for Klopp’s men on Thursday.

Kaide Gordon celebrates his goal in the FA Cup against Shrewsbury Town in 2022

Gordon is one of several youngsters hoping to make an impact against Union Saint-Gilloise 

TRENT HELPS THE HOMELESS

Trent Alexander-Arnold has not just stepped up on the pitch this season, but the new Reds vice-captain has been playing a pivotal role in community outreach projects in the city of Liverpool.

The 25-year-old joined mayor Steve Rotheram and city council leader Liam Robinson in packing Christmas gifts for homeless people. 

He helped pack 2,000 packages at the Whitechapel Centre, which will be delivered to homeless people around the city.

Alexander-Arnold will personally donate 2,000 packages to homeless people in Liverpool this Christmas. 

IT’S ALL KICKING OFF! 

It’s All Kicking Off is an exciting new podcast from Mail Sport that promises a different take on Premier League football.

It is available on MailOnline, Mail+, YouTube, Apple Music and Spotify.

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