Soccer: Parry defends Liverpool from Uefa accusations

We produced a report for Uefa a week beforehand predicting, sadly, all of the things that did go wrong'

Staff and agencies
Monday June 4, 2007
Guardian Unlimited

Liverpool fans emphatically not causing trouble in Athens. Photograph: Milos Bicanski/Getty Images

Liverpool chief executive Rick Parry today stepped in to defend his club's fans after they reacted furiously to news Uefa had branded them the worst in Europe.

The claims will appear in a Uefa report to be handed to the government in the wake of shameful scenes at the Champions League final in Athens. Liverpool fans are accused of stealing tickets from their fellow supporters, charging the gates to get into the ground without tickets and causing trouble outside the stadium, which ended with local police using tear gas.

Now Uefa, in the wake of complaints from Anfield over the way they handled ticket allocation and match security on the night, have hit back with a dossier claiming to show 25 incidents involving Liverpool fans since 2003 in Europe - more than any other club. "What other set of fans steal tickets from their fellow supporters or out of the hands of children?" asked Uefa's director of communications William Gaillard yesterday. "We know who caused most of the trouble in Athens."

But Parry hit back this morning, insisting Uefa should focus on their own shortcomings in their organisation of the Champions League final rather than trying to "deflect attention" on to Liverpool fans. "The shortcomings in the management of the situation in Athens were apparent to anyone who was there," he said. "These latest comments from Uefa should not deflect attention from that reality. What is most surprising about the latest comments from Mr Gaillard is that on the eve of the final, he quite rightly commented that Liverpool supporters 'have a tradition of good behaviour'.

"To have a stadium with no counting system and no turnstiles is unforgivable for any standard of game, let alone a major final. We produced a report for Uefa a week beforehand predicting, sadly, all of the things that did go wrong. They knew and we knew that thousands of fans would travel without tickets and we stressed the need for a proper check at the outer cordon."

Sports minister Richard Caborn, who is due to meet Uefa president Michel Platini tomorrow, added: "I have a lot of sympathy with the Liverpool fans who paid their hard-earned money for genuine tickets but couldn't get into the ground. The reasons for this need an urgent explanation. We have already raised the matter with the Greek authorities through our embassy in Athens and government officials are also talking with Uefa. I will be putting this issue high on the agenda at a meeting I am to have with Michel Platini."

Earlier Liverpool's lord mayor, Paul Clark, who was at the match, had led the fan response. "Uefa appears to be trying to avoid the blame for the disorganisation of the final," he said. "To make matters worse, instead of looking at their own faults Uefa is blaming the people of Liverpool. Saying this is typical of Liverpool fans is unfair and reflects badly on the image of the city."

Les Lawson, spokesman for the official Liverpool FC supporters' club, was equally angered by Uefa's condemnation. "This is typical of Uefa," he fumed. "Rather than look at their own shortcomings, they want to shove the blame somewhere else. The fact they are not willing to stand up and take responsibility is worrying for fans, because that means they will never learn from their mistakes."

"Uefa is dragging Liverpool's name through the mud to deflect attention from themselves," added council leader Warren Bradley. "Big governing bodies like Uefa always look for scapegoats and never accept any blame. There should be a full and appropriate investigation. There is very little information about what actually went wrong. It was only a small minority who caused problems but the people at the top of Uefa think they have the divine right to criticise people."

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