Liverpool fans were "treated like absolute animals" by police and security forces at the Champions League final, according to the member of parliament for Liverpool West Derby Ian Byrne, who demanded a government-led inquiry into the chaos in Paris.
The start of the final, which Real Madrid went on to win 1-0, was delayed by over half an hour as chaotic scenes ensued outside the Stade de France, with UEFA initially blaming Liverpool fans in possession of "fake tickets" for causing congestion.
French interior minister Gerald Darmanin also claimed "thousands" of Reds fans had tried to use counterfeit tickets or attempted to force entry to the stadium, although widespread reports of heavy-handed policing and poor organisation have since emerged.
Liverpool called for a formal investigation into events on Saturday, while Merseyside Police – who had a presence in Paris – have since praised the "exemplary" behaviour of most Reds fans.
Liverpool supporters group Spirit of Shankly, meanwhile, released a statement on Sunday accusing the French authorities and UEFA of "shambolic mismanagement", and condemning the local police's "indiscriminate" use of tear gas and pepper spray.
Speaking to Sky Sports, Byrne, who attended the match, demanded a government-led inquiry into the events, comparing the scenes to the Hillsborough Disaster of 1989, which resulted in the deaths of 97 Liverpool fans following a crush at an FA Cup semi-final.
"It's really difficult, to be honest, to talk about. Seeing the scenes in this day and age, I've never witnessed anything so bad since 1989," he said.
"It was absolutely horrific. To go through that and to try and process what was actually happening, would that have happened to any others sport's fans?
"This is the premium football event, and to be treated like absolute animals, which we were, and then for the narrative to begin, the French interior minister put a tweet out, which was completely untrue, and that narrative aligns with that which we all know so well from 1989.
"I can't thank you [the media] enough, for what you've done and what you put out, telling the truth. The journalists from the UK have been absolutely magnificent, people have seen what actually happened last night.
"I'm going to be calling tomorrow on the foreign secretary [Liz Truss] to ask her counterpart in France for a full inquiry, to get to the truth about what actually happened, because it was absolutely horrific.
"I've never ever seen a more hostile environment for a football fan to go into. From the outset, the police, the security, everything about it was absolutely awful.
"I got in about an hour before [kick-off]. There were 13 turnstiles, they had two open, funnelling people through. I literally begged the security guard to open the other gates, to just let people in. People just wanted to go to the game. There were people there two and a half hours before [kick-off] who were kettled into that situation.
"It was an absolute disgrace. It's important Liverpool Football Club – and I'm sure they will do – and also our government, stand up for Liverpool fans, because that could've happened to any other football team. It's not about Liverpool fans, it's about football fans.
"It should be football fans in this country coming together and saying, 'enough is enough, we're not going to accept that'."
Asked whether he saw any Liverpool fans using fake tickets or forcing entry to the stadium, he replied: "I didn't, and I can only speak from personal experience. I saw hundreds, if not thousands, of local fans jumping the fences, scaling the walls to get in.
"That was my personal experience. Again, it's so easy, isn't it? To put the blame on Liverpool fans, to put the blame on football fans. We need a full investigation into what happened, because this should never ever be repeated."
Guardiola insists Man City share same title hunger as challengers
Pep Guardiola insists Manchester City share the same hunger to lift the Premier League trophy as their title rivals, warning perfection may still be needed for the champions to retain their crown.
It has been a mixed week for City's rivals thus far, with Arsenal thrashing Chelsea 5-0 on Tuesday before Liverpool suffered a surprise 2-0 defeat in Wednesday's Merseyside derby at Everton.
Those results mean the Gunners sit four points clear of City and Liverpool lead the champions by one, but with two games in hand, the title race is still very much in City's hands.
They go to Brighton and Hove Albion on Thursday before facing Nottingham Forest on Sunday, and Guardiola still thinks even the slightest slip-up could prove costly.
Asked whether City need to win their six remaining games to win the title, Guardiola said: "Yes, absolutely. They gave us a chance, with the fact they lost last week to Aston Villa and Crystal Palace.
"But we knew what we had to do before those games, and now we have to win all games so that at the end, we have it in our hands to retain our title.
"Nothing changes. The fact is, we knew what we had to do before, and now nothing has changed."
Guardiola was then asked whether City are as motivated to win the title as their rivals, having lifted the trophy in five of their seven seasons under him to date.
He said: "I would not be here [if not]. There are so many games, and to be in this position after what we have done in the past, it would not be possible [without the desire].
"We know the difficulty is extreme, and it will remain difficult because we have tough games coming up. We go one game at a time, and we know that if we lose, it will be so tough to retain the title.
"Last Saturday proved the many difficulties we have, especially the schedule and recovery time after the game against [Real] Madrid. The players were unbelievable."
Guardiola hit out at the busy nature of the schedule after Saturday's FA Cup semi-final win over Chelsea, saying he couldn't understand how his players had managed to perform just three days after their penalty shoot-out defeat to Madrid.
Those comments have sparked renewed debate about the football calendar, and Guardiola was asked whether elite clubs had a right to complain while organising money-spinning pre-season tours around the globe.
"Yeah, but we have to do it," he said. "We have to pay the salaries of the players and the manager, and the club has fans all around the world who want to see us. They are an income for us.
"It's not easy, but we have to get resources. I would love to say don't go to another continent to play, have another week of holiday, and then train here. But we have to understand the club.
"It's not just Man City. Every club needs those financial resources to be sustainable. Now that we've won a lot, for many years, we have a lot of supporters. That's why it's necessary to do, and you have to adapt.
"But that is not the reason why [he complained]. The reason is that the schedule is so tight. I'm sorry, it's not."
Van Dijk: Liverpool have 'no chance' in title race after derby defeat
Virgil van Dijk conceded Liverpool might be out of the Premier League title race after they suffered a surprise 2-0 defeat to Everton in Wednesday's Merseyside derby.
Jarrad Branthwaite and Dominic Calvert-Lewin scored in either half to give the Toffees their first win over Liverpool at Goodison Park since 2010.
Liverpool struggled to find a way through the Toffees' defence despite dominating for long periods, and the Reds' captain says they will not outlast Arsenal and Manchester City without major improvements.
Speaking to Sky Sports, Van Dijk said: "If we play like today, then we have no chance to consider ourselves in the title race.
"We have to just focus on the next game and that will be a tough one anyway, so we will see.
"We're very disappointed, in so many ways. I think everyone has to look at their own performances. Did they really give everything, and do they really want to win the league?
"We're still fighting and there are still games after tonight, but if we play like we did overall in the game today – not winning challenges and giving the referee a chance to give free-kicks like he did many times, then you have no chance to win the title."
Dyche challenges Everton to 'go and do it again' after crucial derby victory
Sean Dyche challenged his Everton players to "go and do it again" after his team defeated Liverpool at Goodison Park in the Merseyside derby.
Everton won 2-0 on Wednesday, clinching a home victory over their local rivals for the first time since 2010 thanks to goals from Jarrad Branthwaite and Dominic Calvert-Lewin.
While it also dented Liverpool's title hopes, the victory presented a huge step forward in Everton's hopes of staying up.
They are now eight points clear of the relegation zone, with four games left to play, and the possibility of points to come back should they successfully appeal the second of their points deductions for financial breaches.
Dyche, though, insisted the job is not done as he looks towards another big game on Saturday, when Brentford visit Goodison Park.
"Very pleased with the reaction," Dyche told Sky Sports.
"This was a different game with the organisation and the belief in the organisation. They're a good side, we know that. The commitment from us had to be there. The energy of the side and also the key moments.
"We spoke about the desire and the energy of the team and the physical side of the game. The lads did it on Sunday and they'll have to do it again. That's the challenge.
"We stayed focused tonight and I asked if they could stay with us and they did. Sunday was massive and now it was a massively important derby game. For people like Seamus Coleman, he wears his heart on his sleeve and he's so happy.
"We should be on 41 points and the story's different. Three clean sheets in three home games. The challenge for the players is to go and do it again."
Calvert-Lewin led the line brilliantly, converting Everton's second with a towering header early in the second half. He has scored three goals in his last four Premier League games for the Toffees, as many as in his previous 28 appearances in the competition.
"I thought [Calvert-Lewin] was outstanding tonight," Dyche said.
"We've been trying to get him back to where he needs to be and I thought he was outstanding. He gets a goal. He tried to get it over the line and I love that. The second one is a great header. No, I thought he was outstanding tonight.
"Jordan Pickford made some big saves in the first half. It's rare you stop these sides having chances so you need moments yourself. It's hard to pick out one or two [players]."
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