English FA blame Croatians for crowd trouble

THE Football Association have accused their Croatian counterparts of failing to execute agreed security measures prior to this month’s Euro 2008 qualifier in Zagreb.

There is a remote possibility England could be forced to play a match behind closed doors should Soho Square chiefs fail to successfully defend themselves against a UEFA charge in relation to the behaviour of some visiting fans outside the Maksimir Stadium before the 2-0 defeat.

The FA have already asked to be allowed personal representation at a disciplinary hearing in Switzerland on November 9, when the Croatian FA will also be forced to answer allegations of mishandling the entry of fans into the stadium, as well as a failure to control some home supporters.

But, while FA officials admit there were some disturbances outside the stadium, mainly caused by ticketless England fans, they contend the situation would not have arisen had local police not taken the bizarre decision to shut the stadium turnstiles for five minutes on two separate occasions before kick-off.

At the time, hordes of England fans remained outside the ground, so a bottleneck was created, followed by the inevitable pushing and shoving, which triggered a baton charge by riot police.

The FA voiced their displeasure immediately after the game and have vowed to vigorously defend the reputation of their supporters at UEFA headquarters in Nyon next month.

“We will go to UEFA with a very strong case and the intention to clear ourselves,” said FA director of communications Adrian Bevington.

“In conjunction with the UK police and government, the FA works very hard with opposing nations ahead of every fixture, to ensure appropriate plans and measures are put in place for our supporters.

“Unfortunately, we do not believe the agreed plans were followed the Croatian authorities in Zagreb and this lead to a bottleneck at the turnstiles when they were suddenly closed twice before the game.

“As a result of the bottleneck, riot police baton-charged the England supporters closest to the turnstiles and a number of them suffered injuries.”

While UEFA’s powers on incidents such as these are wide-ranging, including the possibility of ground closure, the FA are not thought to be facing anything more than a fine, with UEFA spokesman William Gaillard admitting the charge could yet be dismissed.

It certainly appears the Croatians have more to fear from the UEFA investigation, particularly as there are recent incidents of trouble involving their fans, with Gaillard accepting the massive strides the FA have made in attempting to stamp out the hooligan element from their own vast supporter base.