Two Manchester United fans were arrested in connection with tragedy chanting during Sunday’s FA Cup quarter-final against Liverpool at Old Trafford.
Greater Manchester Police is also trying to identify another United supporter after footage widely shared on social media footage appeared to show him allegedly engaging in tragedy chanting.
GMP announced it had made eight arrests in total at the game, including three Liverpool fans for possession of Class A drugs, an away supporter on suspicion of possession of a pyrotechnic, and two United fans for a racially-aggravated public order offence and pitch encroachment respectively.
As well as the arrests, a 39-year-old man, George Fenning from Edinburgh, has been charged with possession of a Class B drug, possession of a pyrotechnic and throwing missiles and subsequently bailed.
“The arrests made were the result of us taking a proactive, zero-tolerance approach to ensure that genuine supporters and spectators were able to enjoy the match safely,” said Chief Inspector Jamie Collins, silver commander for the match.
“GMP can confirm that a 21-year-old and a 59-year-old man were arrested in connection with tragedy chanting.
“Incidents of tragedy chanting will not be tolerated and will be dealt with robustly.
“We are also aware of footage circulating on social media of a Manchester United supporter engaging in tragedy chanting.
“No arrest has been made yet but GMP are working with both clubs to identify the individual in connection with this incident.
“We held a supporter group meeting with both sets of fans prior to the match and both groups agreed that tragedy chanting was totally unacceptable.
“GMP will clamp down on this and arrest those who engage in such behaviour, regardless of what team they support.
“I hope that these arrests will act as a deterrent to anyone attending future games.”
However, Peter Scarfe of the Hillsborough Survivors Support Alliance believes police have to take a wider approach to tragedy chanting.
In the middle of the second half of Sunday’s FA Cup tie – which United won 4-3 after extra time – a significant number of fans in the Stretford End were heard chanting ‘Murderers’, quickly followed by ‘Always the victims’ and the singing was clearly audible to the live television audience.
“It’s not getting better. The message is not getting through,” Scarfe told the PA news agency.
“It’s one or two arrests and being charged but when you have the Stretford End singing ‘Murderers’ and ‘Always the victims’, who do you target?
“We had Hillsborough survivors at the game and they have tried to report it to stewards and police but there are too many of them.
“I’ve become more hardened in my role but you see how painful it is to be continually called a murderer.”
United did not comment publicly but sources said the club were “fully supportive” of statements issued by The Football Association and GMP condemning tragedy chanting.
But Scarfe also believes clubs should be made responsible for their supporters.
“If you were to fine the clubs the money could go back into emotional support groups or awareness courses but it would then lower the allocation when they come to Anfield,” he added.
“So fans are not getting to go to away games and as it dwindles down there will be a banning order on them all.
“We don’t want that as a club, and neither will anyone else, because you want that banter between home and away fans.
“And I’m not saying there were not chants going the other way: there was one particular guy who started the Munich shout and he was told straight away to shut his mouth.
“Until we get our ducks in order we can’t expect others to do that same. It has to be zero tolerance to them.
“But what is going to happen in three weeks’ time when we play them again and Liverpool are playing to win the league?”
World Cup Girlz back in the fold? Gilbert hints at return of experienced players for Brazil friendlies
For the first time in almost nine months, it seems as if Jamaica’s interim Reggae Girlz Head coach Xavier Gilbert will have members of the World Cup squad at his disposal, when they visit Brazil for a two-match friendly international series in June.
The Girlz, who first locked horns with Brazil, and lost 0-3, at the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup in France, went one better at last year’s global showpiece in Australia, as they not only held the South American giants to a goalless stalemate, but also ensured their elimination at the group stage.
By all indications, that performance, and by extension, the fact that the Girlz made an historic appearance in the knockout stages of the World Cup, earned them even more respect from the number 10-ranked Brazilians, who are currently in preparation for this summer’s Olympic Games in Paris.
The games, scheduled for June 1 and 4, are expected to assist Brazil in their preparation, while the now 42nd-ranked Jamaicans will get a much-needed test to regain their appetite for international competition, having last sported the nationals colours against Canada last September.
Since that Olympic qualifying fixture in Canada, members of the World Cup squad withdrew their services from national representation, citing lack of payment and mistreatment from the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF), among their reasons.
While it is yet to be confirmed how many, if any, of the World Cup players will make the trip, Gilbert gave the clearest indication yet that there might be a few, as he welcomed the games, after not utilizing the last FIFA window.
“It is always important to secure games during the international window. It not only assists in exposing players, but it also ensures the team is active, which helps our rankings, and also our quality of play. Because as you know, the more we play together, especially against quality opponents, the better the team becomes, and we also get to work on different things both offensively and defensively,” Gilbert told SportsMax.TV.
“The expectation is for us to give a good account of ourselves, it has been a while since these players have played together, but the good thing is that they are actively engaged in their respective leagues in Europe and United States. So, it is not like they were inactive, and obviously, it is not the first time they will be playing together.
“So, we just have to keep things as simple or as close to what we did prior to, and during the World Cup, to make sure we are competitive. It is going to be a little bit different, but it’s not far-fetched that we can get another positive result against Brazil,” he added.
Atletico Madrid 3-1 Athletic Bilbao: Hosts close in on top-four finish
Atletico Madrid beat newly crowned Copa del Rey winners Athletic Bilbao 3-1 at home in LaLiga on Saturday as Diego Simeone's side moved a step closer to a top-four finish.
Fourth-placed Atletico moved onto 64 points and have increased their advantage over Athletic, in fifth, to six points with five games to play.
Midfielder Rodrigo de Paul put Atletico in front in the 15th minute with a goal from outside the box. After controlling an attempted clearance from the visitors, his effort dipped just under the bar as his strike deflected off one of the Athletic defenders.
Athletic levelled just before half-time through Nico Williams after Antoine Griezmann lost the ball through a careless pass.
But Angel Correa restored the lead for Atletico in the 52nd minute and later came close to scoring again.
With 10 minutes to play, away goalkeeper Unai Simon inadvertently made it 3-1 with an own goal after Samuel Lino’s effort came back off the post, ending any Athletic hopes of a comeback.
Hull City 3-3 Ipswich Town: Tigers fight back three times to deny Tractor Boys
Ipswich Town missed the chance to move into an automatic promotion spot as play-off-chasing Hull City came from behind three times in a thrilling 3-3 Championship draw at The MKM Stadium.
Ipswich knew a victory would take them second after Leeds United were surprisingly beaten 4-0 by Queens Park Rangers on Friday, and they led on three separate occasions, George Hirst opening the scoring before Omari Hutchinson produced two brilliant strikes from the edge of the area.
However, buoyed by slip-ups from rivals Norwich City and West Brom earlier on Saturday, Hull dug deep to fight back on each occasion, Ozan Tufan and Liam Delap scoring their first two equalisers.
With Liam Rosenior's men 3-2 down with just four minutes to play, substitute Noah Ohio blasted his shot in off the crossbar to punish an error from Ipswich goalkeeper Vaclav Hladky.
The result keeps Ipswich behind second-placed Leeds on goal difference, though the Tractor Boys have a game in hand to come at Coventry City on Tuesday.
Hull, meanwhile, are two points adrift of the top six, with Norwich's goal difference advantage meaning their top-six spot is all but assured. The Tigers will, however, leapfrog West Brom if they beat Plymouth Argyle on the final day and Albion lose to Preston North End.
Data Debrief: Hutchinson's best not enough
Hutchinson was a man who deserved to be on the winning side on Saturday, giving Ryan Allsop no chance with two near-identical left-footed strikes from the right corner of the penalty area.
His goals came from an expected goals (xG) total of just 0.6, and he led all players on the pitch for shots (eight) and passes in the final third (21), also laying on three chances for his team-mates.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
