FANS of Premier League club Liverpool almost drowned out the sound of God Save the King ahead of their game with Brentford on the day of King Charles' coronation.
The British national anthem was met with boos and chants when it was played ahead of the league clash between the sides at Liverpool's Anfield ground on Saturday evening.
Liverpool had revealed on Friday that they had chosen to play the song ahead of the game after the Premier League 'strongly suggested' home clubs playing this weekend mark the coronation.
As the anthem began ahead of the 5.30pm kick-off, the song was greeted with boos, whistles and chants of 'Liverpool, Liverpool'.
During the game, chants of 'F*** the royal family, feed the poor' could also be heard.
Meanwhile, signs saying 'Not my king' could be seen in the stands, while banners referenced Liverpool legend Kenny Dalglish, who is affectionately known by the fans as King Kenny.
'Personal choice'
The day before the game, Liverpool revealed they would play the anthem before kick-off, despite the 'strong views' of some supporters.
The announcement also came despite chants of 'You can shove the coronation up your a***' during Liverpool's home game against Fulham on Wednesday.
"Just over a week ago, the Premier League contacted all home clubs and strongly suggested to mark this historic occasion across home matches this weekend and provided a list of activity for clubs to get involved in," read a statement from the Anfield club.
A Liverpool fan holds up a sign reading ‘Only One King' with a picture of former Liverpool player and manager Kenny Dalglish (Image: Alex Livesey/Getty Images)"Before kick-off and in recognition of the Premier League's request to mark the coronation, players and officials will congregate around the centre circle when the national anthem will be played.
"It is, of course, a personal choice how those at Anfield on Saturday mark this occasion and we know some supporters have strong views on it."
Liverpool fans previously booed the anthem ahead of last year's FA Cup Final victory over Chelsea at Wembley.
According to the Independent, booing of the anthem was common among Liverpool fans during the 1980s as a way to show disapproval of Margaret Thatcher's Conservative government.
Liverpool fans with a flag depicting Kenny Dalglish emblazoned with the words ‘The King’ (Image: MB Media/Getty Images)This anti-establishment sentiment was exacerbated by the 1989 Hillsborough Disaster, which was wrongly blamed on Liverpool fans.
A 2016 inquest found the victims had been unlawfully killed and that the behaviour of fans did not contribute to the tragedy.
It instead found that, among other factors, failings by the police caused or contributed to the disaster.
See More: Coronation, God Save The King, Liverpool
