Hunt begins for football hooligans after 'large-scale' violence

English police and football club officials were today scouring CCTV footage in a bid to pinpoint those responsible for mass violence between rival fans in which a man was stabbed in the chest.

At least 10 people were arrested as bitter rivalry between West Ham and Millwall supporters erupted into what police described as “large-scale” violence before last night’s game at Upton Park, in east London.

A 44-year-old man was stabbed in Priory Road, just yards from West Ham’s ground, and is now in a stable condition while two others were taken to hospital with non life-threatening injuries.

Onlookers described how bricks and bottles were lobbed as hundreds of supporters rioted.

Inside the ground fans fought with police and stewards and play was suspended when scores of supporters invaded the pitch.

The fighting started shortly after 6pm as thousands of fans made their way to the ground.

A Metropolitan Police spokeswoman said fficers were now scanning CCTV footage to identify those behind the clashes.

She said: “We will be reviewing all the events, looking at CCTV both inside and outside the ground to identify offences and offenders.”

Describing the ugly scenes, a 29-year-old man, who runs a kebab shop in Green Street said: “All hell broke loose, it was very frightening. It’s not every day you see stuff like that.

“There were West Ham fans on one side and Millwall on the other. They were being kept apart by the police. There were West Ham fans for as far as you could see along the street.

“Bottles and bricks were being thrown from the back and some were hitting West Ham fans at the front. There were loads of people with bloodied faces.”

He said he closed his shop for two hours as the violence flared. He added that the clashes continued after the match kicked off.

Another man, aged 19, who did not want to be named, said: “People were chipping bricks off buildings and throwing them at police. I saw one officer getting kicked as he was on the ground.”

One West Ham fan who went to last night’s match said the District Line underground train from Barking stopped just before Upton Park at 7.20pm and did not move for around 15 minutes.

“Tempers flared on board as kick-off approached, people tried breaking open the doors,” he said.

He said the train then went straight to Plaistow without stopping, leaving fans with a 15 minutes walk back to the ground.

“The atmosphere was tense in surrounding streets, the police helicopter was up and riot police were everywhere.

“It was only a matter of time before it all kicked off.”

The fan said he saw about 30 police with shields and batons “storm” towards the nearby Boleyn pub.

He said the night “seemed to belong to another era”.

The Football Association (FA) last night vowed to investigate the violence and said anyone involved would be banned from football for life.

A spokesman said: “We absolutely condemn all of the disorder that has occurred at Upton Park both inside and outside of the ground.

“We will be working with all parties, including the police and clubs, to establish the facts surrounding (last night’s) events.

“We strongly expect all culprits to be banned from football for life. They have no place in our game.”

West Ham boss Gianfranco Zola spoke of his shock at last night’s trouble.

He said: “I’ve been involved in difficult games and things happened. Here, I’ve played seven years and I’ve never seen it like this.

“It’s certainly not good for football. I was completely shocked. Totally.

“I knew it was a game that meant a lot for the two sets of supporters, but I didn’t imagine it like this.

“What can I say? I’m a sport man. I love the game. I love to go on the pitch and try and make it exciting for the supporters and enjoyable for everybody to watch. This was beyond my powers.”

Millwall boss Kenny Jackett added: “I wasn’t aware of the stabbing outside the ground. I’m very sad to hear that.

“We’ve got a passionate game in this country, but when it oversteps the mark then things have to be done.”