Oh no...
I am not excusing or condoning our own fans actions but the Russians are fucking animals...Russian Politicians have pretty much said themselves these people are 'more than hooligan ultras', sounds like they have a paramilitary force in France to cause trouble, there fans have been at it again in Lille...
Got to love the name of the Russian Manager though...Leonid Slutsky
Organisers should never have arranged games close to each other, with both Russia v Slovakia and England v Wales scheduled in the Lille Metropolitan Area...
Russia have been handed a suspended disqualification, I hope UEFA invoke that ban to be honest
Russian hooligans defy threat of Uefa Euro 2016 violence sanctions to clash with England and Wales fans in Lille
Russian hooligans clashed with England and Wales fans in Lille yesterday, hours after their country moved to the brink of being expelled from the European Championship.
Trouble flared between a small number of fans from Britain and Russia outside a bar in the centre of the city, as hostilities between the two countries resumed three days after their sickening confrontation in Marseille.
Yesterday also saw Russia’s manager and star striker accuse England supporters of having been equally to blame for last week’s violence as supporters of their own team.
The chair and bottle-throwing in Lille – in which Wales fans joined forces with their England counterparts against black T-shirted assailants – did not appear enough to prompt further action from Uefa, which had warned both the Football Association and Russian Football Union that a repeat of Saturday’s violence could lead to both teams being expelled from the tournament.
Russia were formally sanctioned with a suspended disqualification yesterday, which would be activated in full if their fans cause trouble within a stadium during the remainder of Euro 2016. The punishment, which also included a €150,000 (£119,106) fine, was branded “excessive” by Russian Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko, who nevertheless ruled out any appeal.
Russia manager Leonid Slutsky and striker Artem Dzyuba, who urged their team’s supporters to behave, also attacked the way they had been singled out, arguing responsibility for what occurred in Marseille had been “50-50”.
And Dzyuba claimed criticism of the conduct of Russian hooligans was part of a plot to strip the nation of the next World Cup.
“I don’t really understand this kind of reaction of the British media who have this impression that English supporters are like angels who came to this country and they’re just behaving themselves,” said the Zenit St Petersburg forward. “You have to be objective and it’s 50-50. In every conflict, there are two parts.”
Manager Slutsky, who is also in charge of CSKA Moscow, concurred, as well as accusing England fans of inciting attacks on them by Russia hooligans after the final whistle of Saturday’s 1-1 draw at the Stade Velodrome.
“We do not know what happened on the streets, of course, but when the Russian national anthem was played and all the people were shouting – the English supporters – this was something not ethical at all. And all the gestures we received when we were on our bus on the way to the stadium from all these English supporters.”
Russia's Dzyuba and coach Slutsky accused England fans of inciting violence
Dzyuba declared it “probable” that criticism of Russia’s fans had been politically motivated. “We can see the things the British media are talking about, talking about the World Cup 2018 and they’re saying that they have to take it away from Russia,” he added.
Damian Collins, a leading member of the Culture, Media & Sport select committee, did call earlier for Russia to be threatened with being stripped of the World Cup over the behaviour of their supporters.
Some Russian fans were also facing being deported from France, which launched an operation to arrest some 40 of those suspected of being involved in last week’s violence in Marseille. French Prime Minister Manuel Valls said: “They are not wanted on our national territory due to their behaviour.”
The brutal attacks on England fans by Russian ‘ultras’ had been condoned this week by senior figures in the country’s football federation and parliament – one of whom tweeted “Keep it up!”
They, however, were slapped down by President Vladimir Putin yesterday. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: “I can’t agree with these statements of my colleagues.” Peskov branded the hooligans’ actions as “outrages” and “absolutely unacceptable”.
The lead for football policing in the UK, Assistant Chief Constable Mark Roberts, announced he had obtained evidence that almost 50 England fans had committed a range of offences in Marseille and could face criminal charges.
With England, Wales and Russia fans all in Lille ahead of their countries’ matches there and in nearby Lens today and tomorrow, emergency measures were announced to avoid any further conflict.
Police in Lille confirmed there would be a total ban on alcohol sales in supermarkets for three days from 6pm yesterday and that 350 bars would be ordered to close at midnight tonight and tomorrow. Anyone caught drinking in the street could be arrested.
Explaining the decision, Michel Lalande, the city prefet, said: “It is a dark day tomorrow because there are 15,000 Russians.” There was already a booze ban in place in Lens, with ticketless England and Wales fans having been actively encouraged to stay in Lille instead.
But Lalande said: “The English and Welsh should come on Thursday, after the Russians have left.” The FA’s head of security, Tony Conniford met with UK police representatives in France and the Football Association of Wales this morning to review and help improve security plans for tomorrow’s match in Lens.
The Football Supporters’ Federation and its Welsh counterpart issued a joint statement last night calling for policing methods at the tournament to be reassessed “as a matter of urgency” after officers were accused of failing to protect supporters in Marseille.
FA chief executive Martin Glenn wrote to England fans to urge them “to act in a positive and respectful way”. He also warned: “Anti-social behaviour will not be tolerated and we will work with the relevant authorities to identify those supporters involved and issue sanctions where appropriate to our members.”
Fifa, meanwhile, sought to play down fears over Russia’s suitability to stage the next World Cup by insisting it would put in place a “comprehensive security concept” to prevent a repeat of last week’s hooliganism.
“For the 2018 Fifa World Cup, detailed security planning began by the local authorities from the moment the host country was chosen,” Fifa said in a statement. “The relevant Russian authorities are putting in place a comprehensive security concept for next year’s Confederations Cup and the 2018 FIFA World Cup.” Fifa added that the security would incorporate “any lessons learnt from other events such as Euro 2016”.
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