Segregation plans and a dispersal zone have been put in place around Anfield ahead of the Merseyside Derby.
Liverpool’s fan zone on Anfield Road has been closed off to home fans and the “Fans Supporting Foodbanks” van has been relocated from it’s usual spot the by the Shankly Gates.
It is understood that part of the decision was due to the higher than normal tickets made available to Everton supporters. There have been 7,900 tickets made available as opposed to the usual 2,900.
The Dispersal Zone has been authorised to run from midday to midnight on Sunday 5 January, covering the period before, during and after the FA Cup third round match between Liverpool and Everton at Anfield.
The decision has been met with anger and a joint open letter was released by Liverpool and Everton fan groups questioning the decision making process.
The statement said “Liverpool and Everton have met at Anfield in FA Cup ties before with the number of away fans increasing in proportion to the capacity without the need to close Anfield Road to Liverpool fans nor to publish a Section 34 dispersal notice in advance of the game being played.
“These actions are unprecedented and lead to wider implications. These implications include impact on the local community, the closure of the fan zone and the moving of the foodbank collections point.
“Wider implications include the view of football, Liverpool and Everton especially and the potential precedent for future matches between the clubs.
“We are not naive to assume that no issues arise for the policing, stewarding and health and safety of such games however we are led to believe there were just two arrests at the last game, neither for fan on fan issues, attended by over 54000 fans.
“The changes made for this game appear to us to be heavy handed, disproportionate and out of touch with the reality of the overwhelming majority of Liverpool and Everton match going fans.
“All of this could and should have been discussed and debated in what had been up until recently, the tried and trusted way of engaging with fans beforehand.
“We formally request that the formal discussions with fans be reintroduced beginning with a debriefing on this particular fixture and that should a Section 34 dispersal notice be considered again then ensure fan groups are consulted with first and remind you that in this country, we still have policing by consent.”