The kickoff time for Manchester City vs Liverpool on Saturday, November 25th at the Etihad has been changed due to police concerns over crowd trouble. The fixture has become one of the marquee fixtures on the footballing calendar in recent years.
Mike Keegan reports for the Daily Mail that the game was scheduled for a 5.30 pm (UK time) kick-off. But due to concerns over crowd trouble, the game has been rescheduled to 12.30 pm (UK time). In addition to the kick-off time being changed, Keegan adds that the local safety advisory group, which includes the police believe it would be safer to have the game kick-off earlier.
🚨 𝗙𝗜𝗫𝗧𝗨𝗥𝗘 𝗨𝗣𝗗𝗔𝗧𝗘 🚨
Our home @premierleague clash against Liverpool on Saturday 25 November will now kick-off at 12:30 (UK) ⏱️
— Manchester City (@ManCity) October 13, 2023
Manchester City vs Liverpool has developed a passionate rivalry over recent years. The two teams have competed in epic title races during recent seasons. The most recent was in the 21/22 season where Ilkay Gundogan’s late heroics on the final day denied Jurgen Klopp’s side the title on a dramatic final day.
The rivalry on the pitch between Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp’s sides has highlighted some of the best of English football on the pitch. The fixture has been marred by incidents off the pitch. Liverpool had their usual away-end allocation slashed by 20% last season. It came after a 15-year-old girl was injured by a missile thrown into the home crowd from the away end. Talks are ongoing about Liverpool’s ticket allocation for the clash at the Etihad.
The game will be the first after the November international break. It is sure to be an intense contest between two potential Premier League title challengers.
