Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Minister blames football club managements for hooliganism


 Citizen Protection Minister Christos Papoutsis on Monday blamed the boards of the football
clubs that tolerate hooliganism by their fans, speaking in Parliament on the occasion of the violence that marred Sunday's derby between Olympiacos Piraeus-Panathinaikos Athens. 

The match ended with a controversial 2-1 victory by league-leading Olympiakos in the wake of a handful of questionable referee calls, while several Panathinaikos players were roughed up while running from the pitch after the game's end. 

Papoutsis underlined that police had taken all necessary measures in accordance with the law hours before the opening of the match. 

"I cannot accept that the football club boards, considering the money they spend, cannot control what their fans bring with them at the stadium," he stressed. 

Papoutsis made the comments in response to a current question by opposition Popular Orthodox Rally (Laos) MP Adonis Georgiadis, who called on the government to take a stand as regards Sunday's incidents. 


source: ANA