Rome’s formidable Stadio Olimpico is the final venue Liverpool must conquer in order to reach an eighth European Cup final in their history.
Yet Wednesday’s Champions League semi-final second leg between Jurgen Klopp’s men and Roma falls against a backdrop of security concerns after Liverpool fan Sean Cox was hospitalised following an attack by fans of the Italian side prior to kick-off at Anfield.
An extraordinary meeting between Liverpool, Roma, UEFA and Italian police following last week’s match yielded advice for travelling supporters to avoid certain areas around the city and not to hang banners off national monuments.
Liverpool face Roma in the Stadio Olimpico in Wednesday’s Champions League semi-final
The semi-final falls against a backdrop of safety and security concerns after the first leg
Liverpool defeated their Italian opponents 5-2 in the first leg at Anfield last Tuesday
The 72,698-seater Stadio Olimpico is in the north of Rome, a little over four miles away from the Piazza Campo de Fiori and Largo Corrado Ricci where Italian police have advised Liverpool supporters to congregate during their stay in the capital.
The travelling Reds have been told not to arrive at the stadium on foot. There is a transport service on offer from 3pm in Italy to take fans to the stadium.
Fans have been urged to avoid the Ponte Milvio Bridge in all circumstances, a gathering point for the Roma ultras prior to kick-off. This is Liverpool’s first match in Rome since a UEFA Cup encounter in 2001, where six fans were stabbed.
Numerous English clubs have had their fans hurt in Rome in the years that have followed.
Police have advised Liverpool supporters to arrive at the ground from 5pm – a salient piece of guidance among all the safety assurances. The Stadio Olimpico is not renowned for being smooth to enter.
Turnstiles, while working automatically through scanning a ticket, are old and rickety and fans have been told to expect a ‘long and arduous’ ticket check. Fans need to provide personal ID which matches the name on their ticket to enter.
Liverpool fans have been told to avoid the Ponte Milivo Bridge under all circumstances
Travelling Reds have been advised to leave plenty of time for getting into the stadium
Roma’s most ardent supporters are housed in the south of the stadium – the Curva Sud
Liverpool supporters are housed in the Distinti Ospiti section, a corner in the north of the stadium. The Roma ultras are among the south section, the Curva Sud, which hosts all the ardent home supporters and has a capacity of 7,500.
The north end is where Lazio fans sit – Lazio and Roma share the stadium.
Once inside, things may not be too hospitable for supporters.
The seats are renowned for being dirty and unclean while fans often refer to the toilets as being sparse, hard to find and in a state that bares parallels to a festival. There are often complaints that the women’s toilets don’t have seats.
The running track around the outside of the pitch means fans will not have the most ideal vantage point. But Liverpool have good history there; it is where they lifted their fourth European Cup in 1984 and have not lost to Roma in four European meetings.
Should Liverpool emerge victorious on Wednesday, the view will not tarnish the night for the fans who have journeyed to Italy.
Liverpool fans are in the Distinti Ospiti section (lower left, in brown) of the Stadio Olimpico
Liverpool won their fourth European Cup against Roma in 1984 at the Stadio Olimpico
A panoramic picture of onside Roma’s spacious home dressing at the Stadio Olimpico
The stadium is listed as a category four venue by UEFA and is one of 12 selected by UEFA to host games for Euro 2020.
Renovations to the stadium were carried out in 2008 before it held the 2009 Champions League final, which Barcelona won 2-0 against Manchester United.
But the venue will only be Roma’s home for a couple more years. They plan to open a 52,000-seater stadium of their own in 2020.