Liverpool will not face any sanctions by UEFA following a report
into security problems at last month's Champion League Final,
senior sources at European soccer's governing body said on
Monday.
Citing the document, to be submitted to British sports minister
Richard Caborn yesterday, sources confirmed no action will be taken
against the English club, despite evidence that a number of
Liverpool fans were to blame for the trouble in Athens.
"The report draws up some proposals, not sanctions. There will
be no disciplinary action taken against Liverpool," one UEFA source
told Reuters.
UEFA previously blamed Liverpool fans with forged tickets or
those with no ticket for forcing their way into Athens' Olympic
Stadium on May 23 for the match against AC Milan, while dozens of
fans with genuine tickets were refused entry.
When Liverpool fans tried to enter the stadium, the situation
threatened to escalate out of control and Greek police fired tear
gas and used batons.
But although the report acknowledges that the trouble "was at
the Liverpool end" and their opponents "were not to blame", it does
not point the finger at the club or the majority of its fans.
"The report is more of a narrative on what happened from start
to finish and proposes how to deal with it better in the future
such as better police cooperation and a better strategy," another
source said.
Ironically, the report will highlight the benefits of police
tactics already used by British police forces at soccer matches,
the source said.
UEFA, Liverpool and British authorities will hope news of the
report's contents will calm tensions in the aftermath of the match
which has led to a war of words over who was to blame for the
trouble.
The atmosphere worsened ahead of yesterday's report when a top
UEFA official indicated that the document would identify Liverpool
as a problem club, pointing to 25 incidents involving the English
club.
However, both UEFA and British government officials said they
were not seeking a confrontation when Caborn meets UEFA President
Michel Platini yesterday in Brussels.
Caborn called on Monday for "an end to the blame game".
"This is not about UEFA versus Liverpool or UEFA versus England
fans, we must all stop playing the blame game and stop pointing
fingers at people," he said.
Center of dispute
William Gaillard, advisor to UEFA President Michel Platini and
the official at the center of the dispute,said:
"Yes the troublemakers were Liverpool fans, but these were a
minority of Liverpool fans. As I said the day after the final, 99
percent of Liverpool fans are fine, but this minority causes the
problems.
"They need to be taught that attending a game is not a right it
is a priviledge which you must pay for. You can't take a tube in
London for instance without a proper ticket."
The report will say there was a moment of panic when the Greek
police rightly opened the gates to prevent further trouble, stating
that "a few hundred of the the many thousands of supporters took
the law into their own hands".
"The report says Liverpool stewards, who are capable at home in
their own stadium, were unable to be influential on the night," the
source said,
A second report and more detailed report will be collated and
sent to Britain's Home Office in the coming weeks, UEFA said.
(China Daily via Agencies June 6, 2007)