Sevilla coach knocked unconscious

The Copa del Rey quarter-final second leg between local rivals Real Betis and Sevilla was abandoned tonight after Sevilla coach Juande Ramos was knocked unconscious by a bottle thrown from the stands.

The incident at Betis’ Manuel Ruiz de Lopera stadium happened soon after Sevilla had taken a 56th-minute lead through striker Frederic Kanoute, the first goal in the tie after a goalless draw at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan.

Ramos, who was taken away on a stretcher to an ambulance at the ground, received medical attention before regaining consciousness.

Referee Alberto Undiano Mallenco immediately stopped play while the Sevilla team left the pitch.

The Spanish FA must now decide what to do about the outcome of the tie, with the usual practice in Spain being for an abandoned match to re-commence at a later date from the time it was stopped.

Sevilla president Jose Maria del Nido said after the match: “You have to point the finger at the culprit, only the culprit.

“This could have happened at any ground. Nobody can avoid this if, among the thousands of fans who enter the stadium, there are 10 lunatics, and unfortunately this happened here.”