Hundreds of Liverpool fans MISS start of Champions League clash against Benfica with long queues ahead of kick-off at Estadio da Luz in Portugal’s capital Lisbon
- Liverpool face off against Portuguese side Benfica for a place in the semi-finals
- The Merseyside club are still in the hunt for a historic quadruple under Jurgen Klopp
- Ibrahima Konate gives the Reds the lead in Lisbon before Sadio Mane scores
Liverpool fans were forced to miss the start of their side’s first leg tie against Benfica on Tuesday evening after long queues left hundreds outside of the ground at kick off.
A heavy police presence appeared to be what was holding a number of the fans up outside as they looked to make kick-off.
Pictures taken from inside the away end at kick off showed hundreds of empty seats indicating the difficulties many Liverpool fans had faced in trying to get into the ground.
Liverpool celebrated in front of what appeared to be a half-empty stadium in Lisbon
The Anfield Wrap, a Liverpool fan group, tweeted a photo outside the Estadio de Luz appearing to be surrounded by hundreds of fellow supporters with the simple caption ‘Two mins to kick-off.’
It has been suggested elsewhere on Twitter that some fans were still to gain access to the ground 15 minutes into the game, meaning they would have missed Ibrahim Konate putting their team ahead.
One fan, Phil Blundell, posted on Twitter that the ground did not have turnstiles and as such the police were only able to let in certain numbers at a time.
‘Ground hasn’t got turnstiles so they’re kettling groups and letting them in through a gate a few hundred at a time, disgrace,’ he said.
Sadio Mane scored Liverpool’s second on the night after Ibrahima Konate put them ahead
Simon Hughes, a Merseyside football writer, tweeted a photo from outside the ground criticising the apparent lack of organisation.
‘Scene outside the ground in Lisbon. No organisation,’ he said.
‘Not even that many people behind me. Process seems to be holding everyone back with no filtering system while adding more police, dressed like paramilitaries. Game about to kick off and we’ll miss it,’ he added.
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