'I watched Liverpool at Carragher's in New York and saw lesser-seen side of fanbase'

Over 3,000 miles away across the Atlantic, Liverpool fans are still making their pilgrimage .

It’s not quite down the Anfield Road , nor is it clambering into minibuses headed for Portman Road. But it’s an equally early start, and it’s as close to home as fans in New York are going to find.

Travelling down to the Financial District, right in the southern heart of the hustle and bustle of Manhattan, there is a quietness on the subways. There’s also a smattering of Liverpool shirts, each making their way from the various corners of New York’s five boroughs to descend up on Carragher’s Bar .

For some, it’s a regular pilgrimage from their New York roots to their adopted soccer persona. For others, it’s a way to connect with back home having relocated to the Big Apple. For many others, it’s simply a pitstop on a holiday to ensure they don’t miss seeing their team in action.

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Wherever they’ve come from, they all bring the same air of anticipation. There’s not been this level of unknown for quite some time. It’s the first season in nearly a decade without Jurgen Klopp in the dugout.

In that time, Carragher’s has enjoyed many unforgettable moments. It has seen fans fall deeper and deeper in love with Liverpool. Now, it waits with bated breath to see what comes next.

As NBC’s coverage cuts to a commercial break before the action gets underway, a smattering of fans breaks out into Arne Slot’s new song, introduced to Liverpool by his predecessor, Klopp, during his emotional farewell .

The schedule has not been kind to Liverpool’s Stateside fans, who are perhaps the only people who hate the 12:30 kick-offs more than Klopp. It means kick-off is at 7:30 a.m. local time, but there are still Irish breakfasts flooding in, a mix of coffees, beers and pints of Guinness being consumed.

It’s a cagey start, and you could be forgiven for seeing some impatience or frustration. But why would there be? Klopp taught these fans to believe, and they don’t know how to do anything else.

They know just as well as Slot the quality in this side. They’ve seen it first-hand over countless early mornings, and it’s what keeps getting the hardcore group of around 150 fans here at this time in the morning.

For 3pm kick-offs, 10am in New York, or later games, this place is packed with more than double that number. When Manchester United host Liverpool on September 1, there will be standing room only.

But for now, it’s one game at a time. When Trent Alexander-Arnold’s magic finally unlocks the Ipswich defense and leads to Diogo Jota’s opener, it’s a timely reminder that Klopp might be gone, but the Reds’ grit, talent and ability remains .

Fans break into Jota’s chant, soon replaced by an even louder rendition of ‘Egyptian King’ after Mohamed Salah doubles the lead. After the full-time whistle , there’s a chance for the full song book - led, of course, by ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ but featuring ‘Allez, Allez, Allez’ and unofficial club anthem ‘One Kiss Is All It Takes’ by Dua Lipa.

One consequence of the early start is that by full-time at 9:30am, some fans have already had a few. Inevitably, sports bonds in a way nothing else quite can.

A table of six American men in their late 20s, who started toasting to the new season with an order of six beers and six coffees, is singing Virgil van Dijk’s song with an Irish Liverpool fan sat a few tables down rewarding them with a round of Baby Guinness’.

It’s early days, but the first game of the Arne Slot era brought a sense of normality entering the post-Klopp era. The familiar early-morning pilgrimage to Carragher’s brought a familiar outcome.

There’s work to be done in the transfer market and at the negotiating table , but despite all the upheaval, there remains a sense of calm extending all the way across the pond that there will be a chance to toast many more early-morning wins in the months ahead.