 | « Back to article | Print this article |
Bastia game abandoned after fans attack Lyon players
Olympique Lyonnais' game at SC Bastia was abandoned on Sunday after their goalkeeper Anthony Lopes was attacked by a group of home fans as he left the pitch at halftime of the Ligue 1 clash.
The start of the match had already been delayed by nearly an hour when the Bastia supporters charged the visiting team during their warm-up, forcing Lyon's players to flee the pitch.
At halftime several fans attacked Lopes as he headed for the dressing room, with the score at 0-0, and the game was called off 30 minutes after the second half was due to have begun.
The LFP (Ligue de Football Professionnel), French soccer's governing body, issued a statement condemning the trouble.
It decided to call off the match following consultations with local Corsican authorities in charge of public safety.
The match was due to start at 1500 GMT but was delayed after the Corsican club's fans charged onto the field at the Stade Armand Cesari and threw punches at the visiting players.
Lyon published a tweet on their official account which read: "Bastia supporters have come on to the field to square up to Lyon players who were finishing their warm-up."
The Lyon players returned to the pitch nearly 40 minutes later and the match eventually kicked off shortly before 1600.
Former Lyon player Jeremy Berthod told the club’s official TV station that Bastia fans threw balls at visiting reserve keeper Mathieu Gorgelin's goal as he warmed up.
The balls were thrown back by Lyon forward Memphis Depay before the players were attacked by Bastia supporters.
“The players managed to get together. Both they and the coaching staff are very shocked,” said Berthod.
The LFP said it had asked SC Bastia to re-examine their security arrangements and take all measures necessary to ensure that those responsible were banned from the stadium.
The league added that its disciplinary committee would consider what action to take over the incidents at the stadium.
It is the second time in a week that Lyon have been involved in a match with ugly scenes involving fans after their Europa League clash with Besiktas at Parc Olympique Lyonnais on Thursday kicked off 45 minutes late due to crowd trouble.
European soccer's governing body UEFA began disciplinary action against Lyon and Turkish opponents Besiktas on Friday.
The French club was charged with insufficient organisation and a breach of safety regulations as their supporters blocked stairways, set off fireworks and invaded the pitch after a 2-1 win in the first leg of the quarter-final.
Turkish club Besiktas were charged after the setting off fireworks, throwing of objects and crowd disturbances.
La Liga: Granada lose
Former Arsenal and England captain Tony Adams’s first game as manager of Granada ended in disappointment on Sunday when visitors Celta Vigo ran out 3-0 winners in La Liga.
The result leaves the Andalusians 19th on 20 points from 32 games, still seven points from the safety zone, after 17th-placed Leganes lost 1-0 at home to Espanyol earlier in the day thanks to Leo Baptistao’s 92nd-minute goal.
Granada have not won a league game since March 1 and 50-year-old ex-Portsmouth manager Adams promised when he was appointed last week that he would "try to achieve a miracle".
His side created few chances against the Galicians, who made 10 changes to the first-choice side that started their Europa League quarter-final, first-leg win over Genk on Thursday.
"Everyone is in pain at the moment in Granada. I met the fans yesterday and it is a very difficult situation but we have to keep fighting, we haven't got a choice,” said Adams.
"I thought we were very much in the game. If people haven't watched the game and they see 3-0, they probably think it is a very one-sided game but for me it wasn’t."
In other matches, Valencia held fourth-placed Sevilla to a 0-0 draw at the Mestalla, while Real Betis beat Eibar 2-0.
