Gary Neville has already warned Manchester City what is waiting for them when they walk out at Anfield.
And honestly, I can see exactly why he thinks it could be something very different from a normal Liverpool v Manchester City game.
Liverpool face City at Anfield on Sunday, October 11, and this fixture was already going to be a huge one. Now, following the independent commission’s verdict on Manchester City’s financial rule breaches, there is a completely different feeling around the game.
Neville was speaking on The Overlap when he was asked about the reaction City could face.
His prediction was pretty strong.
“I suspect there may be banners, there’ll certainly be chanting, there’ll be a reception like you have never seen for them at Anfield.”
He then described it as a “brutal day.”
I don’t think anybody who has been to Anfield needs Neville to explain what the atmosphere can be like when Liverpool supporters really want their voices heard.
This could be on another level.
There is obviously a football match to be played, and Liverpool still have to perform. A loud Anfield doesn’t automatically win you three points. City have quality players and, whatever happens off the pitch, they will arrive knowing they can hurt Liverpool.
But I think Neville is right about one thing.
City are going to know very quickly what the mood is inside Anfield.
Liverpool supporters have spent years watching their team compete with Manchester City for Premier League titles. Liverpool finished on 97 points in 2018/19 and still didn’t win the league. They finished on 92 points in 2021/22 and again came up just short.
Those seasons are still fresh in the minds of supporters.
And now the City financial case has added another layer to that history.
City deny wrongdoing and have said they intend to appeal, with sanctions still to be determined.
That is important because nobody should pretend the legal process is finished. It isn’t.
But that won’t stop Liverpool supporters having their own feelings about what has happened.
There could be banners.
There will almost certainly be songs.
And I wouldn’t be surprised if the reception when the City players come onto the pitch is one of the loudest we have heard at Anfield for a long time.
For me, though, the biggest thing will be what Liverpool do once the whistle goes.
This can’t just become an afternoon of anger.
Liverpool need to use it.
If Anfield is bouncing from the first minute, Liverpool have to play with the same intensity. Win the first tackle. Chase the first loose ball. Put City under pressure. Give the supporters something to feed off.
Because if Liverpool start slowly, all that atmosphere becomes a sideshow.
If they start fast, it could become something special.
And that is what makes this fixture so interesting.
City aren’t just coming to Anfield for another Premier League game. They are walking into a stadium where a huge number of Liverpool supporters will have something to say.
Gary Neville thinks it will be brutal.
I suspect he might be right.
Now Liverpool have to make sure the football matches the atmosphere.
By Jamie (The Kopite View)
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