da premier bet： Police have charged 46 men after 'serious disorder' from Legia Warsaw fans before their side's Europa Conference League game against Aston Villa.
da bet sport： Article continues below
Article continues below
Article continues below
46 fans arrested for serious disorderLegia Warsaw fans prevented from entering groundAston Villa won 2-1 at homeWHAT HAPPENED?
Various objects were thrown by Legia Warsaw supporters at police and Villa fans ahead of and during the game between the two sides. Legia fans were held in a coach park nearby Villa Park by police before the game and they were then denied entry to the stadium. Legia accused Villa of going back on their agreement on the number of seats allocated to the away fans, but Villa claim the decision was driven by safety fears. Villa have launched an official complaint to UEFA.
Advertisement101% Ultras XWHAT THE POLICE SAID
A statement from the West Midlands Police said: "We've charged 46 men over Thursday night's violence outside Villa Park. Of those, 43 have been charged with a public order offence, while two have been charged with assaulting police officers and another has been charged with possession of a knife.
"Those charged are aged between 21 and 63, and around 40 are believed to be from Poland. A small number are believed to be UK residents. We are continuing to review CCTV and body-worn video footage to identify further suspects in what was an appalling and violent public disorder. It is now known five officers suffered minor injuries in the disorder.
WHAT VILLA SAID
Aston Villa issued an official statement: "The UK safety authorities, UEFA and Aston Villa, communicated on November 2 that the ticket allocation for away fans for this fixture would be reduced to 1,002 on the advice of safety authorities as a result of previous large-scale disorder caused by Legia fans last month at AZ Alkmaar.
"In spite of numerous requests for cooperation from Legia Warsaw concerning their travelling supporters, especially in the last two days, no assistance on the serious safety matter of away fans attending Villa Park was forthcoming from the visiting club.
"The club has repeatedly, including [Thursday] morning, raised concerns in conjunction with UEFA and all the relevant authorities to Legia that ticketless away supporters were attempting to attend Villa Park."
WHAT LEGIA SAID
In response to the violence, a Legia statement read: "We repeatedly informed the British counterparts about necessary measures for the security of the venue and its vicinity. Despite this, the British police, in their official responses, only acknowledged the potential risks without implementing our suggestions. Regrettably, due to the actions and inactions of Aston Villa F.C., adverse incidents occurred yesterday. By disregarding our constructive feedback, the host club bears full responsibility for the situation.
"Aston Villa F.C. breached UEFA regulations multiple times – initially by not allocating the required 2,100 tickets (5% of the stadium's capacity), then reducing the agreed 1,700 tickets to just 890. Such decisions contributed to the escalation of tensions."