The French Police have given their response after concerns were raised by Newcastle United about the disgraceful treatment of the club’s fans on Tuesday night.
Newcastle United released a statement on Wednesday morning which began…‘We will be formally raising our concerns with UEFA, Olympique de Marseille and French police in relation to the unacceptable treatment of our supporters by police at Stade Vélodrome following Tuesday’s UEFA Champions League fixture.’
Olympique de Marseille, to nobody’s surprise sadly, came out with an absolutely outrageous response.
Not only denying there were any serious issues with how Newcastle United fans were treated, BUT ending their own official response (see below) with…’Finally, the Club wishes to commend the rigorous and coordinated work of the Police Prefecture, whose actions ensured the smooth running of the event and the safety of all supporters.’
As for the French Police, they have provided their own official statement to La Provence, which is a local newspaper published in Marseille.
Official from The French Police about the treatment of Newcastle United fans in Marseille, as given to La Provence:
The Bouches-du-Rhône police prefecture…sending us its response:
“Security for the OM-Newcastle match was prepared well in advance, in conjunction with UEFA and the clubs: two meetings at the prefecture and one meeting at the stadium under the auspices of UEFA. A significant security operation was put in place to guarantee the safety of the supporters: a meeting point at Place de la Joliette secured by several UFMs (unified security personnel), dedicated metro trains to avoid any risk of clashes with Marseille supporters, a dedicated area in the stadium, and security on dedicated metro trains for the return journey. “
The Prefecture then addressed the post-match situation (for Newcastle United fans):
“The fans were kept in the stadium for an hour after the match to ensure their safety and prevent any overlap with Marseille supporters. This plan was communicated, discussed, and approved by Newcastle United and UEFA. The club committed to disseminating information effectively to its fans. The security plan’s objective was achieved: no aggression or clashes between fans occurred, apart from an isolated incident elsewhere in the city later that night, which was stopped thanks to a swift police intervention […] The police maintained a cooperative attitude throughout the entire operation.
” At a specific point towards the end of the security operation, in the visitors’ section, a crowd surge required intervention from the riot police, and one of them briefly used tear gas, which inconvenienced about twenty supporters for a few minutes. Apart from this incident, there was no use of force, and the operation proceeded smoothly. No injuries or complaints were reported following this event. No correspondence was received from the club.”
