VIDEO/PICS' LAST NIGHT FANS FOUGHT RUNNING BATTLES '

Arrests made after West Ham, Chelsea fans clash at London Stadium

Video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0JDmDwlawrE

By Lyall Thomas and Mark Ashenden

27/10/16


West Ham United and Chelsea fans clash during their EFL Cup tie

Over 1,000 stewards were on duty.

Fans fought running battles

Violent clashes between rival supporters inside the London Stadium marred West Ham's EFL Cup win over Chelsea on Wednesday night.

The Metropolitan Police made seven arrests and announced they would "work tirelessly to identify people involved and bring them to justice", while the Hammers vowed to ban any fan implicated in the disorder.

West Ham and Chelsea fans threw missiles across a segregated area of the ground before breaking through security and clashing along a walkway at the top of the Sir Trevor Brooking Stand.

Police in riot gear entered the fray and managed to quell the disorder, as play in West Ham's 2-1 victory concluded.

A West Ham statement read: "West Ham United and London Stadium partners unreservedly condemn the behaviour of individuals involved in incidents during this evening's fixture with Chelsea.

"Whilst quickly brought under control, the club, in line with its clear zero tolerance policy, will work closely with London Stadium 185, the Metropolitan Police Service and Chelsea to identify the individuals involved.

Chelsea and West Ham fans threw missiles across a segregated area


"Once identified, those found to have acted improperly will be banned from attending any West Ham United fixtures for life and we will request the courts serve banning orders to prevent these individuals attending any other football."

A Chelsea spokesman added on Wednesday night: "The club is extremely disappointed to see disturbances at the end of tonight's game and we condemn such behaviour.

"It would be inappropriate to comment further until tonight's incidents have been investigated properly."

West Ham manager Slaven Bilic described the scenes as "unacceptable" and Chelsea head coach Antonio Conte expressed his disappointment.

There was a significant police presence inside and outside the London Stadium


Commander BJ Harrington of the Metropolitan Police said: "Although the vast majority of people left the stadium peacefully and were well behaved, there were a minority of people who attended the match that were clearly intent on being involved in confrontation and violence.

"We welcome the condemnation from partners and have already started a post match investigation."

Sky Sports News HQ's chief news reporter Bryan Swanson was at the game, deemed high risk by the police due to the history of violence between both sets of fans.

He said: "What this did is quite graphically illustrate that the segregation promised at this match will be questioned by the authorities, the clubs and police.

"For whatever reason, there seemed to be a slow response and that's why it escalated so quickly.

"This was always billed a high-risk match. The police said there would be robust policing inside the stadium and West Ham were at pains to say they wanted this game to be trouble-free. They urged every supporter to be an ambassador. It will raise questions about why there was that coming together of supporters on the walkway."

West Ham United and Chelsea fans clash during their EFL Cup tie

There has already been violence involving West Ham supporters outside their new stadium at Stratford following the recent Premier League games against Watford and Middlesbrough.

Nine arrests have been made outside the ground since the beginning of the season, while West Ham have issued 23 banning orders for offences ranging from drinking in view of the pitch to breaking the line of segregation.

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West Ham United and Chelsea fans clash during their EFL Cup tie

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West Ham United and Chelsea fans clash during their EFL Cup tie

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West Ham United and Chelsea fans clash during their EFL Cup tie

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The Metropolitan Police made seven arrests and announced they would "work tirelessly to identify people involved and bring them to justice", while the Hammers vowed to ban any fan implicated in the disorder.

West Ham and Chelsea fans threw missiles across a segregated area of the ground before breaking through security and clashing along a walkway at the top of the Sir Trevor Brooking Stand.

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West Ham and Chelsea fans in violent clash as they throw chairs, bottles and coins at each other with riot police forced to separate them at London Stadium

Daily Mail

Thursday 27th October 2016


Riot police were forced to step in as Chelsea and West Ham supporters clashed at the London Stadium tonight - with bottles, seats and coins used as missiles.

Tensions boiled over at the end of the EFL Cup tie at the London Stadium, as supporters attempted to burst through the segregation line and stewards forlornly sought to keep them apart.

As missiles flew from one set of fans to another, pictures emerged of bottles and seats being thrown by West Ham and Chelsea fans, injuring a number of people.

One Chelsea supporter was spotted with a cut on his head after a coin allegedly struck him.



Riot police were forced to step in as Chelsea and West Ham supporters clashed at the London Stadium tonight - with bottles, seats and coins used as missilest Ham United v Chelsea at the London Stadium
A seat flies through the air as fighting breaks out in the stands in the second half of West Ham United v Chelsea at the London Stadium

As a handful of Chelsea fans broke ranks, the response team appeared to panic with dozens of stewards sprinting to the scene. The police seemed irritated by the reaction of the stewards
West Ham issued a statement within an hour of the game at London Stadium, promising life bans for any culprits identified by CCTV. Manager Slaven Bilic condemned 'unacceptable' behaviour.

And the Football Association are sure to launch an investigation after rival fans had to be separated by riot police inside the ground with seats ripped out and hurled, along with bottles and coins.

The shameful scenes broke out in the final five minutes of the game as the two sets of supporters appeared to breach the lines of segregation to confront each other.

Stewards and riot police raced to the area to quell the tensions but not before seats had been torn out and hurled among supporters while bottles and coins flew overhead.

West Ham moved into the former Olympic Stadium this season and the opening fixtures have been fraught with crowd issues against Bournemouth, Watford and Middlesbrough in the Premier League.

This was the first clash against a major rival and it was the biggest away following yet, with 5,200 Chelsea fans in attendance.

Police cannot be stationed inside the stadium until February, owing to the absence of radio system Airwave that allows forces to communicate safely. They can only enter the stadium in the case of crime, as they were as this game descended into violence.

West Ham are not directly responsible for the safety planning of the stadium. The ground's owners, the E20 partership (comprised of Newham Council and London Legacy Development Corporation) have leased out the security obligations to a security firm called London Stadium 185.




Before this game, the club and the operator had ensured that former Upton Park stewards, who have a greater rapport with West Ham fans, would be positioned in the more volatile areas of the stadium. In a statement on Monday, the stadium stakeholders had also claimed that there are 'categorically not' safety issues at the ground. Sadly, they were proved wrong.

And so an evening that began with scuffles between supporters outside the turnstiles therefore ended with damning images of West Ham and Chelsea fans having to be separated by riot police.

The first sign of trouble arose outside the entrance for the away fans. At 7.30pm, 15 minutes before kick-off time, a block of several hundred Chelsea supporters arrived at the staircase that leads up to their entrance at turnstile D and a flare-up ensued.

A working police officer told Sportsmail: 'A large group of Chelsea fans came all together and they had to be held back at the bottom of the stairs as West Ham supporters were entering just a couple of hundred yards along the way, so they also had to be restrained.' What followed was 15 minutes of scuffles and foul-mouthed arguments.

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West Ham and Chelsea fans in violent clash as they throw chairs, bottles and coins at each other with riot police forced to separate them at London Stadium

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West Ham and Chelsea fans in violent clash as they throw chairs, bottles and coins at each other with riot police forced to separate them at London Stadium

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Hope s few of them like tinned turkey for Christmas. They're fucked.

This didn't surprise me last night its been waiting to happen its happened a bit sooner because they where drawn together in the cup we always said it could have spurs or arsenal there last night or even millwall .its alright moving to these stadiums in the middle of nowhere but they forget it can be a invite for trouble at least when you are in the older grounds you are more contained.it still beggers belief that the London clubs still want to fight each other and everyone else

Well that clip was a bit of nothing. Just like most footie violence. 2 sets of gesturing supporters separated by a line of stewards. If these people were really intent on getting at each other do you honestly think they couldn't get through the stewards and police.

Football Away Days
‏London stadium with seats being thrown and Chelsea fans trying to get into the home end

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was there any trouble before the game or was it just after the game

Well that clip was a bit of nothing. Just like most footie violence. 2 sets of gesturing supporters separated by a line of stewards. If these people were really intent on getting at each other do you honestly think they couldn't get through the stewards and police.

Exactly what I thought, the stewards and police were small in numbers and didn't seem overly worked. They will still do time for gesturing.

Well that clip was a bit of nothing. Just like most footie violence. 2 sets of gesturing supporters separated by a line of stewards. If these people were really intent on getting at each other do you honestly think they couldn't get through the stewards and police.

Exactly what I thought, the stewards and police were small in numbers and didn't seem overly worked. They will still do time for gesturing.

Can anyone remember Karren Brady's quote about Cardiff fans when she was at Birmingham ?