The qualifying match for the Euro Cup 2012 between Serbia and Italy, which was being held in Genoa, was abandoned after the fans from Serbia got overexcited and started to throw flares on to the field.
It was a tough task for the police to maintain order and discipline in the arena. The kick-off had already been late by forty five minutes and the efforts of the security and discipline maintainers were all seem to be going in vain as the Serbian fans displayed their excitement pretty recklessly in the Marassi football stadium.
It is also to be notified that the referee stopped that play after only seven minutes of play, as the crowd got out of control and started to throw more flares on to the ground.
Now the match between these teams will be played some other time. Italy and Serbia teams are in the same Euro Cup qualifier group as Northern Ireland. Italy is still leading the group chart and performing pretty well and on the other hand, the Serbian team is still busy trying to capture the right winning chemistry for them.
In the match of Northern Ireland against Faroe Islands on Tuesday, both the teams displayed a good game and the match ended as a tie. The final score of the match was 1-1.
The mob in the abandoned match of Serbia and Italy was not at all ready to sit quietly and watch the match and it is also to be noticed that the Serbian fans had already clashed with the police before the match. Now the mob’s actions are expected to result in Italy being given a 3-0 win by default.
The Italian Football Federation general secretary Antonello Valentini expressed his views very anxiously and told the media that the decision took by the referee was a good decision as he was thinking about the security of the team. He added that now the matter is in the hands of UEFA (Union of European Football Associations) and their disciplinary committee.
It is to be notified that when the match got started the fans from Serbia got out of control and tried to tease the Italian supporters by flashing lights and fireworks. Moreover, the Serbian fans started to throw flares on to the pitch. Some fans tried to clash with the Italian supporters and with the police as well. Later after the riot, the referees stopped the match and the players were sent back to their changing rooms.
When the goal keeper from the Italian team, Emiliano Viviano, was asked about the matter, he expressed himself by saying that it was not a good sight at all and it was totally impossible to play. He added that the goal where he was standing was not safe and the decision taken by the referee at that time was the right decision. A flare also landed very close to Emiliano Viviano.
Still no official announcement or statement has yet been issued by UEFA about the abandoned match. The Director of Italian Football Federation said that they are not happy with the way everything has happened and they are sorry for such an incident which ruined the day’s play. He told the media that the referee stopped the match when the second blaze was thrown on to the field. Later the referee informed that he could not guarantee the security of the players in such conditions.
Now the decisions by the UEFA are still awaited but incident happened at the Marassi stadium has certainly portrayed a bad image of some football loving fans. In order to make the world’s favourite game safe and secure UEFA should take some serious measures. Some rules and regulations for the spectators should also be introduced, to guarantee the security during the match.