Arsenal fan injured in Rome assault

An Arsenal supporter was attacked by a Roma fan here an hour before the teams met in the last 16 of the Champions League, the British embassy in Rome told AFP on Thursday.

Around 1800 GMT Wednesday the man, whose name and age have not been made public, “was in a minibus near the Olympic Stadium when it was attacked by Roma supporters”, an embassy spokesman said.

The fans “smashed the window of the bus and one of them got on”. In the ensuing fight, an Arsenal supporter was injured.

“We don’t know the precise nature of the injury,” the embassy added, following press reports that the Arsenal fan had been stabbed.

However, the spokesman stressed that the injured supporter had received treatment and was able to watch the second leg match which Arsenal won after a penalty shoot-out.

Arsenal officials had, in the build-up to the tie, warned their supporters to beware the risks of hooliganism being carried out by some Roma fans.

Champions League matches involving Roma during the past three years have been blighted by numerous acts of violence carried out by extreme sections of their support.

And this latest incident is now set to lead to renewed questions for European football governing body UEFA as to whether Rome remains the right place to stage the Champions League final on May 27.