Spooked builders on the site in Liverpool’s Stanley Park say they have spotted the apparition of an old grey-haired man.



It is 24 years since wily Scot Shankly died of a heart attack aged 68.



But as the Reds start plans for a new home away from Anfield, it seems Shanks – whose ashes are buried just a stone’s throw away from the site – has returned to make sure they’ll never work alone.



Labourer and Reds fan Colin Pike, 25, said: “I was mixing cement when I saw this hazy figure in the distance walking across the site.



“People think this is a joke but I swear he had light grey hair and a red tracksuit on.



“He was the spit of Shankly. It was uncanny.



“At first I thought it was a real person but he wasn’t. He just disappeared like that. Tools have also mysteriously gone missing. I know it sounds strange but I reckon it’s all connected.



“I’ve always believed in spirits and the paranormal and I reckon it is Shankly coming back from the dead to try to stop this

stadium being built.



“He lived and breathed Anfield. And he was probably turning in his grave when he heard it was being knocked down.”



Shankly became an instant icon with his passion for the game and razor-sharp wit. He also adored Anfield.



When queried by a hotel clerk for penning “Anfield” as his address, he quipped: “But that’s where I live.”



A play about the working-class hero, who has a bronze statue at the ground, is currently being staged in Liverpool to celebrate the city’s year as European Capital Of Culture.



A source on the Shankly Show production team said: “You can really feel a presence during live shows.



“It’s as if he’s shadowing the actor on stage. It’s quite eerie.”



He added: “I wouldn’t be surprised at all if the great man is haunting the new ground.



“Anfield was his home. And it always will be.”



Shankly transformed the Reds from a team of no-hopers rooted at the foot of the old Division Two into the best team in the country in just five years.



As well as securing three league titles, he won the FA Cup twice and the UEFA Cup during his 15-year stint as club manager.



The new 60,000-seater stadium is expected to be built by 2012.