Liverpool fans will be made to wait to see the new Anfield Road stand up close after the Reds announced plans to play their final pre-season friendly at Deepdale next month.
Jurgen Klopp's men will meet German side SV Darmstadt on Monday, August 7 - six days before their Premier League campaign begins at Chelsea - as they bring their summer schedule to a close at the home of Preston North End. The game will kick-off at 7pm.
With the finishing touches still being put on the 7,000-seat expansion of the Anfield Road end, Liverpool will play their fifth and final friendly in Lancashire before they look to open their gates to crowds of up to 61,000 from mid-August onwards.
Rumours circulated last month suggesting the Reds were as many as four weeks behind in their plans to open in time for the visit of Bournemouth on August 19. However, the ECHO revealed the idea behind the friendly at Deepdale last month, and it is understood the proposals have been in the pipeline for some time. The arrangement is not down to being off-track on the £80m Anfield Road development project.
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Liverpool have traditionally played their final fixture of the pre-season calendar at Anfield and entertained French side Strasbourg barely 24 hours after the Community Shield win over Manchester City 12 months ago.
Two years ago, the Reds held back-to-back exhibition games at Anfield against Spanish sides Osasuna and Athletic Bilbao in early August following the full re-opening of the ground to paying supporters after the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, as the club gears up to open up the famous ground to the biggest crowds in decades from August 19, Liverpool will now end their warm-up fixtures in Preston.
The Reds return to pre-season training on Saturday before Klopp's international contingent join up with their colleagues on July 11. From there, the squad will fly out to Germany for a training camp in the Black Forest before meeting Bundesliga II outfit Karlsruher on July 19 at the BBBank Wildpark Stadium. A behind-closed-doors match against Greuther Furth is also on the agenda on July 24 before Liverpool depart for Singapore.
While out in the Far East, The Reds will play Leicester City at the National Stadium in Singapore on July 30 before a meeting with Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich on August 2 at the same venue.
Season ticket holders and official members can purchase tickets for the Deepdale friendly against Darmstadt from 10am today (Thursday, July 6.) A general sale will take place Monday, July 10 subject to availability. More details here.
