Harry Maguire's dad trampled by ticketless fans at Wembley who crushed his ribs
England defender Harry Maguire says his dad struggled to breathe as he was engulfed by a stampede of ticketless supporters at Wembley Stadium.
A mob of fans were filmed storming past stewards ahead of the Euro 2020 final against Italy on Sunday – punching and kicking them to force their way through.
Large numbers of people reported that their seats had been taken by intruders, sparking heated and violent exchanges inside the north London venue.
Among those caught up in the chaos was Harry’s dad, Alan, who was left with suspected broken ribs after being knocked to the floor.
The 56-year-old accountant was crushed alongside Harry’s agent, Kenneth Shepherd, as they tried to get to the seating area for players’ families.
Alan was left struggling to breathe and was in excruciating pain, but he did not ask for medical treatment as he was determined to see his son play such a momentous match.
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a webbrowser thatsupports HTML5video
Harry told the Sun: ‘It was scary — he said he was scared and I don’t want anyone to experience that at a football match.
‘The experience at Wembley is always amazing, filled with great people and great fans normally. But this time was obviously the final and everyone got overwhelmed and the way some people acted was totally wrong.’
The Manchester United player says Alan will always come to games to support him, but that he will be ‘a little bit more aware of everything going on around’ after his ordeal.
He added: ‘It was not a nice experience — it shook him up. But he was fortunate as every game he has been to he has had my nephew or one of my kids on his shoulders.
‘So I’m thankful that did not happen as it could have been a really serious moment.’
UEFA has confirmed an investigation is underway following the disorder at Wembley.
The body has also charged the English Football Association with four other offences.
These relate to a pitch invader, an object being thrown from the crowd at Leonardo Bonucci, booing during Italy’s national anthem and supporters lighting flares inside the stadium.
In a statement, the FA said it would carry out its own full investigation into the trouble at Wembley.
It added: ‘Security and stewarding numbers for the UEFA EURO 2020 final exceeded the requirements for the match and were greater than any other previous event at Wembley Stadium.
‘However, the behaviour of the people who illegally forced their way into the stadium was unacceptable, dangerous and showed a total disregard for the safety and security protocols in place.
‘No steward or security staff should be subjected to this type of behaviour and we thank them for their support in the night.
‘We also apologise to anyone at the match whose experience was affected by this unprecedented level of public disorder.
‘We will continue to work with the relevant authorities to identify and take action against these people where possible.’
A total of 19 Metropolitan Police officers were injured as they tried to control unruly fans during and after the final.
The force made a total of 86 arrests in connection with the match, 53 of which were made at Wembley.
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at [email protected].
For more stories like this, check our news page.
Source: Read Full Article