As the club rushes to complete construction, the new Anfield Road stand will be closed for Liverpool’s next three games.
The Reds had anticipated that the Anfield Road reconstruction, which started in September 2021, would be finished in time for their first home game of the 2023–24 season against Bournemouth last weekend, but the project has been beset by several delays.
Mail Sport revealed last month that Liverpool’s primary renovators, Buckingham Group Contractors, had declared bankruptcy, leaving the team without a construction company to finish their new stand.
The club has now acknowledged that a new building contractor has been selected for the job and that they intend to “resume the final works on the project.”
The club has now informed supporters that Anfield won’t be at capacity for their next three home games as a result of construction delays.
For the following three games, the top tier of Liverpool’s Anfield Road stand will be closed.
The Reds will be hoping to be at full strength for their match against Everton in October.
The upper tier of the new Anfield Road Stand will remain closed, according to a statement on Liverpool’s website: “For the West Ham United, Leicester City, and Union SG fixtures, the capacity of Anfield will be the same as the opening two games of the season against AFC Bournemouth and Aston Villa.”
There are worries that Liverpool may also have to play host to Everton’s opponents with a smaller stadium. On October 21, the Merseyside Derby will take place, two weeks after their Europa League match against Union SG.
To reach their goal of 61,000 spectators, the Reds are constructing a new upper tier onto the Anfield Road stand.
Prior to the start of the season, Liverpool received special permission from the Premier League to play their season-opening match away from home in an effort to complete the project.
However, further work must be done in order to meet Liverpool City Council criteria, thus the club will resort to a strategy in which more capacity is gradually brought in over upcoming home matches.
Billy Hogan, chief executive officer of Liverpool, commented on the administration filing by the previous construction company Buckingham Group Contractors: “Obviously, timing is quite flexible right now. Where we are at the moment is very unclear, but that will undoubtedly change with time.
We’re currently in a bit of a holding pattern. But if Buckingham does go into administration, we’ll have to deal with any delays that may occur from that in finishing the new stand.
We will work with Buckingham and any additional contractors who may be hired in the future, of course, to keep as many of the current jobs and skills that have been a part of the project from the beginning as possible.
The Reds boss acknowledged that the current state of affairs was both “disappointing” and “frustrating,” but insisted that the team is “still aiming for October.”
He continued, “Obviously, we considered having the stand completely open in October, and obviously, we discussed the uncertainty that this announcement brings.
We are still aiming for October, however right now we are working on creating a plan. I am aware that this is quite upsetting and disappointing.
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