Liverpool have gone to the Premier League to challenge the decision to reduce their away allocation for next month's fixture at the Etihad Stadium.
The two fixtures between Manchester City and Liverpool this season have been marred by crowd trouble, despite both clubs appealing for good behaviour from fans in December. The Premier League fixture at Anfield saw Liverpool allege that offensive graffiti was left in the away section, as well as offensive chanting about the Hillsborough disaster heard.
City said objects were thrown at Pep Guardiola in his technical area, and that their team bus was attacked on the way home from Anfield. For December's Carabao Cup game, a teenage City fan was injured after a plastic cup loaded with coins was thrown from the away supporters housed in the upper tier of the South Stand at the Etihad.
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Both clubs had issued a joint appeal for fan behaviour to improve, vowing to clamp down on any unacceptable incidents. City have since taken measures to protect supporters in lower tiers after the December game by restricting the sale of seats to away fans on the front rows of the upper tier when home supporters are housed below.
Now, Liverpool's allocation for the April 1 fixture has been cut to 2,382 - around 500 less than the equivalent fixture last season. In response, Liverpool say they have contacted City and the Premier League to challenge the reduction in away allocation.
In a statement, they said: "Liverpool Football Club has been informed that its ticket allocation for the forthcoming Premier League fixture against Manchester City on April 1 at Etihad Stadium has been significantly reduced.
"This reduction was agreed between Greater Manchester Police, the local Ground Safety Advisory Group and Manchester City. LFC has been in contact with the Premier League and Manchester City to challenge this decision. The club is committed to having as many supporters as possible in stadiums for Premier League away fixtures."
The Spirit of Shankly Supporter's Group said previous reductions from just over 3,000 before the pandemic was due to missiles being thrown from home areas at the Etihad, urging City and the SAG to reverse their decision.
They said: "We acknowledge there have been issues involving both sets of supporters in recent seasons, but this course of action is counter-productive.
"At the corresponding fixture last season, Liverpool fans experienced overzealous stewarding and policing, and were locked in the ground after the match with no access to toilets. Such undue treatment of supporters serves only to increase tension, which SOS fed back to Greater Manchester Police at the time.
"We understand reduced allocations at the Etihad have also happened to other clubs, which don’t seem to be about away fan behaviour, but poor crowd management. We look for support from LFC and urge Manchester City and the relevant authorities to rethink and reverse their decision."
Manchester City did not comment on the matter, although ignoring the decision made by the Safety Advisory Group - with Greater Manchester Police, the council and safety officials all involved - would risk the safety certificate that allows the match to go ahead.
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