Chaotic scenes.
People in this part of the world don’t get too excited by the Europa League, but FC Köln supporters certainly are, and 20,000 of them made the trip to watch their side play Arsenal in the competition.
The German fans made their presence felt in London ahead of the kick-off, which was delayed due to safety concerns.
We just had this coming down the street. Koln fans arriving for a trip to the Emirates Stadium. Long walk! pic.twitter.com/tUPHNTvx4r
— Ken Loach & Sixteen Films (@KenLoachSixteen) September 14, 2017
The match is due to start at 9:05pm, rather than the scheduled time of 8:05pm, due to concerns about crowd safety. FC Köln supporters were allocated 2,900 tickets for the game, meaning thousands of ticketless away supporters turned up outside the Emirates.
When the gates eventually opened, there were disturbing scenes. According to BBC journalist Richard Conway, fights broke out between some away supporters and stewards inside after the stadium.
The fixture is the club’s first in Europe competition since 1992, and the scenes around the Emirates were chaotic ahead of the delayed kick-off.
Koln fans fighting with stewards inside Emirates stadium. Group arrived in home end and fought their way into away section. pic.twitter.com/7RC17WZyz2
— Richard Conway (@richard_conway) September 14, 2017
Cologne fans smashing barriers in a bid to get inside the Emirates https://t.co/aRojf2ShMT
— Telegraph Football (@TeleFootball) September 14, 2017
Mean time at the Emirates… pic.twitter.com/H6TnFHBPrO
— 𝗣𝗘𝗗 🇪🇺 (@PED7) September 14, 2017
Koln fans are buying Arsenal tops to try and get into the stadium without a ticket.
It's like the opposite of The Great Escape pic.twitter.com/kSYCY8Ajcr— Stephen Hagan (@stephen_hagan) September 14, 2017
Cologne away fans area at Emirates stretching deep into @Arsenal section leaving home fans concerned over lack of segregation @itvfootball pic.twitter.com/xqYffilYDQ
— Gabriel Clarke (@gabrielclarke05) September 14, 2017
All orderly again inside the Emirates with police presence. Koln fans in full voice. pic.twitter.com/ePc8J0ZYJC
— Richard Conway (@richard_conway) September 14, 2017
