(Image: PA)

Anfield’s Main Stand has been evacuted ahead of Liverpool’s friendly clash with Athletic Bilbao. The game is scheduled for a 5pm start, followed by another encounter against the same team at 8pm.

Supporters were ushered out of the stadium after an alarm went off, just as they were settling into their seats. The cause of the evacuation remains unknown at this stage.

The Reds are gearing up for the upcoming Premier League season, with a blend of senior and youth players set to take on their Spanish counterparts in two distinct matches.

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Darwin Nunez, Alexis Mac Allister, Curtis Jones, Harvey Elliott, Kostas Tsimikas, and Andy Robertson are some of the first-team regulars listed for the initial game.

This pair of friendlies marks Liverpool’s first outing at Anfield following the heart-breaking loss of Diogo Jota. The 28-year- old tragically died in a car accident with his brother Andre Silva last month, reports the Mirror.

In his programme notes, captain Virgil van Dijk remarked: “It has, of course, been a very challenging time.

“First and foremost for Diogo and Andre’s family, for Rute and the kids. They are the people who must always come first in all of this. We must never forget that, and we cannot imagine their pain in this moment.

“It is still a bit surreal, to be honest, but we are coping in the best way possible as a team, and we are all trying to do the best job we can in order to get through this really difficult time.

“With everything that happened, it has been strange having to now try to carry on with work, with football. We will never forget Diogo, of course, but we just have to try to honour his memory. That’s what we try to do each and every day.

“I always come back to the fact that we have to look after Diogo’s family, his parents, and that’s the main thing. You think about so many different things, and it’s difficult to process. You can’t imagine the pain, the feeling that they have. That’s why we try to be there as much as we can, and for each other as well.

“That’s also why it is very important that we honour and carry on his legacy, not only for now and the next couple of months, but for as long as we can, because that is what he deserves.”