FOR as long as I can remember, making Anfield bigger and better has been a recurring debate.
When Liverpool are successful, the issue intensifies further.
Those days when you could walk up, pay in, and watch the match are long gone. And tickets for the aways are like gold dust.
The issue has come to the fore again this week with news of a consultation with residents over new plans for the Anfield Road quickly followed by fury as circa 70,000 people clamoured for tickets online.
Somewhere, among the hordes of Liverpool memorabilia I’ve gathered over the years, there’s an old programme with Peter Robinson writing in it about demand for tickets and the size of the stadium.
And that was long before work on the Kemlyn Road, Anfield Road and Main Stand changed the face of Anfield from how it once was.
ALL CHANGE: The standing Kop and the Kemlyn Road
Since then, we’ve had ‘The Parry Bowl’, the Hicks and Gillett Stanley Park debacle, talk of a groundshare with Everton and various drawings of stadiums that never progressed beyond an architect’s imagination.
We’ve also had something that actually happened in the shape of the new Main Stand, with redevelopment finishing in 2016.
Anfield’s capacity is now 54,074, making it the sixth biggest in the Premier League behind Old Trafford (74,994), the Tottenham Hotspur stadium (62,062), The Emirates (60,260), West Ham’s London Stadium (60,000), and The Etihad (55,097).
I’ve always been one to bang the drum for Liverpool to punch its weight. For it to act big and think big.
A season ticket waiting list remains, while the option to join it has now long gone. Members sales continue to frustrate as mentioned.
So just build a 70,000-seater stadium, right? After all, that would make it easier to access tickets. It would get more supporters through the turnstiles. It would provide more opportunities for the legacy of loving Liverpool to be passed on to another generation.
LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND – Saturday, April 14, 2018: Liverpool’s Anfield stadium seen from across Stanley Park before the FA Premier League match between Liverpool FC and AFC Bournemouth at Anfield. (Pic by Laura Malkin/Propaganda)
It’s so easy for us to say this though purely from a football fan perspective. A big ground, a good ground, is part of the club’s identity. And so of course we want it to be the very best it can be.
That passion-driven want can often ignore other factors, though.
The club is now committed to Anfield. On that spot, in that footprint. It makes it special. It keeps it grounded in the past. We can look at that pitch and pinpoint those special memories. Had Liverpool moved away to a soulless identikit bowl like so many other clubs, we wouldn’t have been able to say the same.
Staying put narrows the angles, though. Anyone who has been a regular at Anfield over the years will tell you that the increased capacity the new Main Stand has brought with it new challenges.
It can take longer to get there and longer to get away. A line of buses post match does little to alleviate the issue.
Meanwhile, Sandhills and Kirkdale stations are a bit of a walk. Which is fine if you’re good on your feet. Less so if not. Parking is not something I attempt around the match these days. But I don’t imagine more fans attending the ground has made things any easier.
A bigger ground should mean improvements in local infrastructure. What are they? How much will they cost? And who is paying?
Then there are the people of Anfield. There have been much-needed calls for supporters who descend on the area to show more respect for it in recent times. Less litter, less anti-social behaviour, less using the streets and gardens as a toilet. A minority of people doing any of that can make a big difference to people’s lives.
It’s perhaps not considered enough by many.
Again, a bigger stadium will mean more potential for that kind of incident. How can it be prevented? What measures can be put in place to make the lives of people in Anfield better?
Liverpool FC’s decisions – and lack of them at times – down the years has undoubtedly led to plummeting property prices in Anfield. To some urban decay. To a feel that certain streets were forgotten. And that people living there were just counting down to the day they eventually left.
Bridges need to be rebuilt. And that takes time. Some good work in the community has taken place. Newer houses have started to appear in the area. But undoubtedly more needs to be done. The spot earmarked for a hotel that sits undeveloped is another example of how the club influences the area.
If Liverpool need to tread carefully, and make things right locally before going big with Anfield Road developments, perhaps it is the right thing.
For the majority of us, Anfield is a place we visit periodically. We swoop in, we eat, drink, go the match and leave.
For others it’s where they live. Where they grew up. Where they work and where they go to school.
“The club” as it’s so often referred to, has to do right by them as much, if not more, than it does by us.
Liverpool Football Club should be just this. Of the city, part of the city, not just in the city.
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“We all want the stadium to be bigger, but we have to be mindful and respectful of the people who live and work in Anfield.”
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Pics: David Rawcliffe-Propaganda Photo
It also helps the economy, both in the City and in the local area. As such, if it does grow then so does the boost it gives to this economy
Bring another 50,000 people into town every weekend and everyone wins.
This is our opportunity to push on.
Build a 100,000 stadium
Too many people thinking about the locals for that to happen. Probably blues. They love holding us back.
We all love Anfield it’s our spiritual home. Surrounding infrastructure dictates expansion. The kop being the hub can’t be expanded further back because of this so why not swap ends? Think of the size a new kop could be at the Anfield road end. At least we would still be at our home.
Brilliant idea
I suggest d management of A field commissions a team of experts in d field urban planning, architects, civil engineers, physical planners and environmentalists to come out with a paper on d issue, taking into consideration, a new stadium, expansion, vis a vis all other socioeconomic factors
Thats all well an gud it helps the economy,but if you go to Anfield you’ll realise theres not much room to swing a cat.the only thing u can do is build upwards.and they cant go too high
Good article robbo , I wonder where is the new training hotel ? Next to club shop ? Why isn’t LFC building a themed LFC hotel , training young local people in hospitality , then all the overseas fans could spend their money in anfield , at the club and local businesses like homebaked , for a week rather than just the 3 or 4 hours the fans are at the match . Club legends could get involved , themed rooms etc , more importantly helping young unemployed anfield residents , to get their start in hospitality . I think LFC are missing a huge opportunity there !
Great article.
The existing freight line that runs near the ground should have a station built close to the ground, the improved rail line could also serve and improve access to other parts of the city.
Hes right, spot on, get it built
Good piece Gareth, thanks.
Good piece fella. I think part of the problem is some fans want it all, a world class stadium, fantastic surrounding facilities / amenities for both home and away fans, massively improved infrastructure for both home and away fans and all the same for locals too… and in that order.
The good news is, all of the above is possible. The bad news, it will cost a shit ton of money, more than LFC have, more than Liverpool City Council could ever hope to spend and more than the government in Westminster (whatever colour it might be) would ever dream of spending anywhere other than London or Manchester.
Sorry, facilities and amenities? we just want to watch the game live.
Time to sell to the Chinese money men.
Doesn’t really say much though does it?
How does the club help the locals?.How can the club’s development specifically help it’s locality?
And if I was to receive a quid for every LFC fan who looked to justify their existence with a comment about “the local economy”, I’d be able to.thibk about signing Mbappe myself.
Looking at the new plans for the Anfield road end impressive as it is it’s ironic our most famous stand (the kop) is now dwarfed and our smallest. Surely there has to be a way to increase the kop by a steeper rake and brought further back or a cantilever design in future.