Merseyside Police confirm two officers were harmed in ugly scenes ahead of Liverpool vs Manchester City clash

Liverpool fans attacked Manchester City’s coach as it arrived at Anfield, with bottles, coins and other projectiles being thrown at the bus

Ugly scenes marred the build-up to this evening's game (Getty)

Merseyside Police have confirmed that two of their officers were harmed in the build-up to Liverpool’s Champions League tie with Manchester City after being struck by projectiles thrown at the visitors’ team bus.

Liverpool fans attacked Manchester City’s coach as it arrived at Anfield, with bottles, coins and other projectiles being thrown at the bus.

The driver’s door was subsequently smashed, along with the front windscreen, with Uefa now poised to launch into an investigation into the incident.

Liverpool later apologised after the incident which left City’s team bus unworthy for the road. A statement read: “The club condemns in the strongest possible terms the scenes which preceded our Champions League quarter-final, which resulted in damage being inflicted on the Manchester City team bus”.

Merseyside Police have now confirmed that two of their officers were harmed in the ugly scenes which marred this evening’s first-leg quarter-final tie at Anfield, which ended in a 3-0 victory for the hosts.

Merseyside Police Match Commander Superintendent Paul White said: “We are aware that damage was caused to the Manchester City team bus as it approached Anfield stadium this evening ahead of the Liverpool v Manchester City match.

“Thankfully no-one on the bus was injured, but injuries were caused to two of our officers when projectiles were thrown towards the bus. The officers and stewards are there to protect the public and keep them safe.

“This behaviour by a number of people who threw bottles, cans and pyrotechnics towards the bus is completely unacceptable and we will conduct enquiries to identify who was responsible and bring them to justice.

“We worked very closely with both clubs to ensure the safety of the public and the teams themselves, and it is disappointing to see that a number of people behaved in this appalling way.”