Every Liverpool fan has wondered at some point or another how you go about getting close enough to the players to say hello, let alone get a shirt signed. I’ve tried most of the obvious routes over the years, from my Kop season ticket days through to now, with mixed results. Here’s where I’ve had luck, where I haven’t, as well as what I’d tell anyone hoping to come home with a signature.
The Training Ground
If you want the best chance of seeing first-team players up close, the training ground is where to head. The club moved to the AXA Training Centre in Kirkby in the November of 2020, after more than 60 years at Melwood. The good news is that the first team and the Academy share the site, so anyone you might hope to get a signature of will be there. You can’t get in, so the routine is the same as it always was. You wait by the gates and hope that a car slows down.
@robdmedia Liverpool players arrive for their last training session of the season as the club prepares to say goodbye to two club legends The home game against Brentford on Sunday represents Mohamed Salah & Andy Robertson’s last game for the club #premierleague #viral #football #fyp #liverpool ♬ DARK HORSE FLOW – Tyffanne Latifah
The last time I went, on a weekday morning, there were about 20 of us there before nine o’clock. It was a nice mix of local kids, a couple of families on holiday and a few regulars who clearly knew the drill. Most cars went straight through. Two players lowered their windows and signed a handful of things for the people at the front, so I managed to get my programme done by one of them. That was after nearly three hours of standing about, which, with my MS, meant bringing a fold-up stool and accepting I’d be useless for the rest of the day.
It’s worth knowing that the club isn’t keen on crowds there. Back in 2017, Liverpool asked players to stop signing things outside Melwood after a run of safety problems on the narrow road leading to the old training ground. The club stressed that nobody would be fined for stopping, but it explains why some players drive straight past even after the move to the AXA. In terms of good rules to follow, stay on the pavement, never step into the road and don’t chase a car that hasn’t stopped.
Anfield on a Matchday
Anfield is a brilliant place to see the players arrive, but a poor place to meet them. The team bus usually turns up about 75 minutes before kick-off, coming down Anfield Road and driving straight into the players’ entrance by the Main Stand, which fans can’t get anywhere near. You’ll get a wave through tinted glass if you’re lucky.
That doesn’t mean it isn’t worth heading along to see them, though. Standing on Anfield Road for the bus before a big European night, with flags and flares and the whole street singing, is one of my favourite things in football, so it’s worth just going for the atmosphere rather than an autograph.
I’ve never had any joy after the final whistle either. The players are back on the coach long before the crowds clear, so I gave up waiting around years ago.
One option that remains a possibility, though, is if you happen to have a ticket in the lower part of the Main Stand. Players that are either injured or out of the squad for some other reason will often sit in an area of seating that you can walk up to to speak to them. That is how I got Alisson Becker’s signature when he was out injured a couple of years ago, for example.
Legends Q&A Sessions
If what you really want is to sit in a room with someone who played for the club years ago, the Legends Q&A sessions at Anfield are the easiest way in, with prices starting at £25. They run on Saturday mornings, often bundled with the stadium tour, and the line-up for this autumn includes Mark Lawrenson, Steve McMahon and Ian Callaghan.
I went to one a couple of seasons back and loved it. It’s an hour of dressing room stories you won’t hear anywhere else, with the legend that I saw being more than happy to stop for a quick photo with a few of us at the end. That isn’t guaranteed, so don’t book it purely for a signature, but it’s a far more relaxed way to meet a hero than freezing outside a gate.
LFC Women
One of the main routes into getting signatures of players that people often overlook is the LFC Women’s team. They play their home games at the BrewDog Stadium in St Helens, with the club occasionally running free prize draws through MyLFC to give the winners the chance to meet the players after the final whistle for autographs and photos. Fans are asked not to crowd the pitchside, so the draw is the official way to do it.
Even without that, though, a women’s game is a cheap, friendly day out, with the players feeling much less out of reach than they do at Anfield. It is not uncommon for players to be more than happy to stop and chat to people in a way that the men’s team simply isn’t able to.
Club Shop Appearances
Every so often, the club shops host special guests. In the March of this year, for example, the LFC Retail account flagged guest appearances at the Liverpool ONE store. Those tend to be announced at short notice on social media, so you’d do well to follow the club’s retail accounts and be ready to move quickly.
These events can draw long queues, of course, so arrive early and expect to wait. For me that’s the one drawback, but a signature that comes with a proper hello is worth a lot more than a scribble through a car window.
My Advice
More than anything else, you’d do well to keep your expectations sensible. The training ground gives you the best odds with current players, but even there you’ll go home with nothing most days. Bring something small and easy to sign, plus a decent marker pen rather than a biro, because a programme or a photo is much quicker for a player to deal with than a full shirt.
Above all, be polite and patient. The players who do stop are giving up their own time, so the fastest way to make sure they stop doing it is a scrum at the gate with other signature hunters. Say thank you, step back, and let the next person have their turn. After all, we’re all Reds here.
