Everton fan who tried to hit Lyon player while holding his son blames players and club for allowing incident to happen
The man, who does not want to be named, has been questioned by Merseyside Police and banned for life from Everton's Goodison Park stadium
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.The man seen holding a child while trying to hit a Lyon player during Everton’s 2-1 Europa League defeat this week has said that he is “ashamed” of his actions, but blamed the Premier League club for not taking the right security measures to prevent him from reaching the pitch.
The football fan has been banned from Goodison Park for life by Everton after television cameras captured him running towards the players as a clash between the two teams threatened to spill into the stands – all the while holding his three-year-old son.
The man, who does not want to be named, hit Lyon goalkeeper Anthony Lopes on the face, which led to an angry reaction from the Frenchman’s teammates. He retreated backwards after lashing out at Lopes, but continued to shout aggressively towards the Lyon players as they clashed with the Everton team.
Merseyside Police are investigating the matter and confirmed that they spoke to a 30-year-old man from Knowsley, having voluntarily attended a police station to answer questions over affray and assault, before being released pending further inquiries.
In an interview with the Sunday People, the man seen involved in the melee said: “I was out of the police station inside half an hour with my solicitor. But I’m ashamed of what I’ve done. I already know. I’m not a f****** d***head.”
The man added that he fears his ex-partner and mother of his son will attempt to ban access to his children over the incident, and claimed that Everton should have had the right security measures in place to prevent such an occasion where the fans can reach the playing field. He also blamed the players for putting his son in danger by “swinging their arms”, and insisted that he was “carried forward with other fans”.
“They’re supposed to be setting an example, as professional athletes,” he said of the players.
“I put myself and my son in a dangerous position by taking my eye off the ball and getting carried forward with other fans. Before I knew it I was through the gate, which should have been shut. Everton should have provided adequate security.
It was not intentional but I’d been too concentrated on screaming abuse at the players for being s***
“I knew I’d put myself in that dangerous position. It was not intentional but I’d been too concentrated on screaming abuse at the players for being s***.
“And before I knew it I was led down there – then it was like, ‘F****** hell, what’s going on?’ and it looks the way it looks.”
Watch the video below...
It’s far from the first time that a fan has managed to become involved in a fracas during a football match, and the man compared the incident to the one involving former Manchester United forward Eric Cantona, who infamously kicked an opposition supporter in 1995.
“Cantona ran off the pitch, gave a fan a kung-fu kick in the chest and I’m the worst thing in football. Are they deluded?” he added.
“It doesn’t look the best on video but I know what happened and what I intended to do. That’s why I’m so aggrieved.”
Asked if he feared losing access to his children, he responded: “I live with my mum. I don’t know what social services want to see me for.”
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments