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Security arrive at Old Trafford more than 6 hours before Liverpool clash

  /  autty

Dozens of security staff and Greater Manchester Police officers were seen preparing additional barriers outside Old Trafford more than six hours before Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's side are due to take on Liverpool.

The original match was forced into a postponement after Manchester United fans broke into Old Trafford and invaded the pitch before kick-off.

Ahead of the rearranged date tonight, security staff took every precaution in formulating a plan well in advance to prevent a repeat protest from fans.

Players also altered their normal routine as they drove themselves into Old Trafford in the early afternoon to beat fans to the stadium having found themselves barricaded in the Lowry Hotel when chaos dominated the build-up to the original meeting.

Sportsmail revealed on Wednesday that United  mounted a top-secret operation to stop anti-Glazer protesters from disrupting their plans for Thursday’s re-arranged clash with Liverpool.

United have adopted a siege mentality, with players sworn to secrecy prior to the day of the game over their preparations and staff were given information on a need-to-know basis to avoid leaks and limit the security threat.

The club are trying to prevent a repeat of the scenes that caused the fixture to be postponed 11 days ago when protesters blocked the team from leaving the Lowry Hotel and hundreds more clashed with police at Old Trafford.

Last week, the departure time from Carrington for the Europa League semi-final against Roma in Italy was kept under wraps until the last minute amid rumours that fans might try to sabotage the team bus en route to Manchester Airport.

The players stayed at home before Tuesday’s game against Leicester and were only told on Monday night to meet at the training ground before travelling to the stadium.

Sportsmail understands plans changed again ahead of Thursday night's game against Liverpool. There was visibly tighter security to prevent further disturbances after it became the first Premier League fixture to be called off due to a protest.

More to follow.