Anfield Ready to Vent Venom and Vitriol As Hicks Prepares to Inspect the Troops

The draw of Anfield is so powerful on a European night that even Tom Hicks is weighing the hassle of a rare public appearance at Liverpool against a guaranteed adrenaline rush this evening. His presence would not shift focus from a third Champions League final in four seasons, Rafael Benítez said yesterday, but it would demonstrate the strength of Liverpool's siege mentality should they deliver.

Work finally commenced on the club's much vaunted stadium project last night when a spade broke the surface of Stanley Park for the first time since Hicks and the co-owner, George Gillett, promised construction would begin within 60 days of their takeover - in February last year. Yet the landmark moment was simply a further illustration of the rancor and divide through which Benítez and his team have advanced on Moscow.

The first act of an estimated £350m project was not funded with bank loans or even blessed with planning permission. It was a ceremonial dig staged by the Spirit of Shankly supporters group in protest at the American owners and the stalemate over the club's future, the trickle-down effect of which has been to stall a stadium development critical to the overall regeneration of the Anfield area. The dig took place within three hours of Benítez's call for unity against Chelsea and, while the manager may well get his wish (little can distract Anfield from the thought of finding room for a sixth European Cup), not every ounce of venom will be reserved for the Londoners should the Texan and/or Gillett elect to take a seat at the front of the directors' box.

"I think that our supporters are very clever and they know we need the people behind us from the start," said Benítez who, given his position in the Liverpool political landscape, would not renounce Hicks's decision to watch the club he part-owns. "The supporters know we are playing the second leg at Stamford Bridge and I think they will be focused on the team."

Avram Grant and several Chelsea players have placed great store on the fact Anfield will not host the second leg of this Champions League semi-final, unlike in the clubs' previous two encounters, and Benítez encouraged the argument yesterday. "It will be different clearly," said the Liverpool manager. "When you play the second leg at home you know the score and so you can manage. We need to score and to not concede because we know it is very difficult at Stamford Bridge. It is difficult for everyone at Stamford Bridge. The supporters know this and they know the atmosphere is the key." Not necessarily.

It is certainly true that Chelsea froze in the extraordinary atmosphere of the 2005 semi-final at Anfield, a night when Liverpool's desperation to reclaim a place in the final after a 20-year absence produced a volume that may not be bettered. But to believe Anfield will determine the outcome - and, given Benítez's confidence approaching this tie, it is doubtful he shares that view whole-heartedly - is to diminish the improved Champions League pedigree of this Liverpool side.

Liverpool have lost only one of nine two-legged knock-out ties in the Champions League under the Spaniard, in the first round against Benfica in 2006. Of their eight victories three have been confirmed away from home, at Bayer Leverkusen and Juventus en route to lifting the trophy in 2005 and this season's comprehensive defeat of the Italian champions Internazionale. It is not a record that suggests Liverpool thrive on atmosphere alone. The team's reaction to the Machiavellian politics of the club's owners, however, shows a single-mindedness reminiscent of Italy during the 2006 World Cup and their success against the backdrop of the Calciopoli scandal.

"I cannot guarantee it is similar to Italy but it could be," said Benítez. "Clearly the players are focused on football now and they know we can't waste time talking about the other things. Now we are in a good moment, so we must try to enjoy this moment."