The FC Groningen-NEC match has been permanently stopped because a supporter of the home team threw a cup of beer at the linesman.
That happened in the 18th minute after a duel on the sidelines between NEC’er Souffian El Karouani and Oliver Antman of FC Groningen. The linesman flagged for an offense by Antman, after which he was hit on his lower leg by the cup. The perpetrator was immediately taken away by security guards.
General director of FC Groningen, Wouter Gudde, called the incident in front of ESPN’s camera ‘dramatic’. He spoke of a good atmosphere in the stadium, until it went wrong again.
Gudde: ,,Everyone knows the rules. There are 20,000 people in the stadium. And there is one person who ruins it. We have been involved in several incidents this year, so be honest. It is again FC Groningen that gets negative publicity.”
‘Never come back’
,,If you can’t behave yourself, stay away and never come back”, continued Gudde, who fears a match without an audience. “That is a very harsh punishment. But apparently it’s necessary until everyone gets it.”
The KNVB announced new policy after things went wrong in De Kuip earlier this month, at the Feyenoord-Ajax match. Davy Klaassen was hit by a lighter there.
If objects are thrown on the field, the game will be stopped immediately. If it happens a second time or if a player or official is hit, the game will be permanently abandoned.
Permanently discontinued
There was still hope that the game would resume after all. After consultation with the mayor of Groningen, Koen Schuiling, it has been decided to stop the game permanently.
The necessary security measures are taken outside the stadium. Police vans are set up around the Euroborg, so that agents can intervene in the event of possible disturbances.
Painful
FC Groningen coach Dennis van der Ree understands the decision of referee Richard Martens, he told ESPN on camera. “Sure, those are the rules. But it sucks. We had the momentum and were well into the game. And by an action of one person it is stopped. That hurts.”