Arsenal, Liverpool and Tottenham supporters groups have come together to criticise the Gunners for reducing the ticket allocation for away fans for FA Cup ties at the Emirates.

The Arsenal Supporters’ Trust, Black Scarf Movement, Tottenham Hotspur Supporters’ Trust and Spirit of Shankly are furious over the ticketing for Arsenal’s third-round tie with Tottenham and next week’s fifth-round match with Liverpool.

Competition rules state away fans should be given 15 per cent of the stadium — 9,050 seats — but Arsenal gave Spurs and Liverpool only 5,186 tickets each while fourth-round opponents Coventry were offered 8,686.

Arsenal say the decision was made on the advice of their Safety Advisory Group “due to fears over safety issues from supporters standing in the upper tiers of the stadium”. The group consist of representatives from the club, Metropolitan Police, local authority and transport.

However, in October Arsenal granted Chelsea the full 9,000 tickets for their League Cup fourth-round tie and that game passed without any crowd trouble.

And now four fan organisations have questioned the decision regarding the FA Cup ties, asking six questions of the club including why a stadium that opened in 2006 can consider the upper tiers safe for home fans but not for away supporters in some circumstances.

They have also asked how the club can be granted a safety certificate if the ground is unsafe for some supporters in the upper tier — and how Arsenal can stage concerts in the off-season where fans are routinely seen dancing in the top level.

Marc Harold of the Black Scarf Movement told Standard Sport: “Fans are sick of being treated as if they don’t matter, especially when supporters at games are an integral part of football. We support Spirit of Shankly, as if the shoe was on the other foot, we’d be understandably upset at having a reduced ticket allocation. Effective stewarding and policing should ensure fan safety — so to take the easy option and cut an allocation on an assumption of how many fans may behave only serves to ensure thousands of loyal fans miss out on watching their team.

“As Spirit of Shankly say, would Coventry fans be better behaved than fans of Liverpool?”

Darren Alexander, joint chairman of the Tottenham Hotspur Supporters’ Trust, said: “It can only be a good thing when supporters put aside petty rivalries and work for common interests and goals.

“Previously petty rivalries have stopped us from working together and that has worked in the football authorities’ best interests.

“I have heard from our fans that objects were thrown at them [during the FA Cup game] such as glass bottles, lighters and cups of urine, which is not nice.

“We have spoken to the Premier League about this, where if away teams don’t take their full allocation then that block should go unsold.”

Arsenal and the Football Association have come under fire this season over the kick-off and pricing for these matches, with the Spurs game beginning at 5.15pm on a Saturday, Coventry at 7.45pm on a Friday and the Liverpool clash set to start at 4pm a week on Sunday.

Arsenal changed the Liverpool match to a Category B game, meaning tickets for away supporters and some home fans were priced at £35.50 for adults, compared with £62 for the clash with Spurs.

But the supporters organisations are not satisfied.

“The FA Cup has always been heralded as one of the most esteemed competitions in world football,” a statement released by the four groups said. “It would appear the FA and the participating clubs do not hold the competition in the same regard as the fans.”