'Indiscriminate force' - fans on police treatment in Marseille
- Published
We asked for your views and experiences after Newcastle confirmed they will complain over the treatment of supporters by French police in Marseille on Tuesday.
Here are some of your comments:
Zack: Surely the only punishment for this kind of thing is to block them from hosting home games until the treatment of away fans isn't war-like. A £10k fine or whatever isn't going to change anything.
Russ: What a great stadium display from the home fans and atmosphere but the treatment of Newcastle fans not good. We were made to get to the ground via tube, which started transporting Newcastle fans from 16:30. We were in the ground from 17:15 and then couldn't leave until 01:00 and we were still not the last out. The toilets were flooding at the end of the evening into the area where we were made to stand in three centimetres of water. The police were very intimidating, heavy-handed and used indiscriminate excessive force. We were treated badly and there was no effort made to communicate with the Toon fans.
Jim: I was sprayed with tear gas.
James: What will it take for Uefa to establish the full facts and then take appropriate action against the parties responsible for abuse? I anticipate that a precedent has been set - e.g Champions Leaque final of 2022 in Paris but nothing of any substance. Would a ban on French clubs be fair? No, but they certainly could be made to play outside France to protect travelling fans. Would this bring about a change in police behaviour in France?
James: Why do we want to play in Europe? I don't. It is always the same, not just for Newcastle supporters. We should boycott European competitions. They are more trouble than they are worth.
Peter: I'm unfortunately not surprised. I had a very similar experience at the hands of police in Lyon following Manchester United a few years ago. The police were aggressive and brutal, picking individuals randomly from the queues at the turnstiles and forcing them onto buses (me included). Anyone who resisted was beaten with batons. I raised a complaint at the time but clearly nothing has changed.