FORMER player Marlon Harewood and David Moyes’ elderly father were caught up in terrifying scenes as West Ham fans were attacked by AZ Alkmaar thugs.
The Dutch fans reacted angrily to the Hammers’ 1-0 win in the Europa Conference League last night.
The result meant Moyes’ side progressed to the final 3-1 on aggregate and will now meet Fiorentina.
Pablo Fornals’ 94th minute strike sealed the victory, sparking AZ Alkmaar hooligans to attack a group of travelling friends and family of the Hammers’ players and coaching staff sat behind the dugout.
We reported how several West Ham players, including sporting director Mark Noble, rushed to help protect them from the thugs – who were dressed in black and wearing balaclavas.
Footage shot by a witness in the stadium then showed how a brave fan stepped in to defend those behind him in the terrifying scenes before another equally-brave individual jumped in to help also.
READ MORE WEST HAM
Ex-striker Harewood, a Championship Play-Off winner, a Premier League hat-trick scorer and the man who fired the Hammers into the 2006 FA Cup final, has now been revealed to have also been caught-up in the chaos.
The 43-year-old, who spent four years at the club but now heads up Nottingham-based company AC13 Premier to provide top of the range bespoke cars to the sporting elite, shared several clips and snaps of himself both heading out to and at the game in Holland on Thursday.
Another photo later emerged of the concerned looking East End icon in the stands just yards away from the disgusting scenes.
London-born Alkmaar boss Pascal Jansen admitted he was “ashamed” of the ugly scenes, while Moyes also revealed how his elderly father was caught up in the mayhem.
Most read in Football
The West Ham boss said: “I can’t explain what happened and why it happened. The players were involved because it was the family section. That was probably the reason for the reaction.
“I don’t want that in any way to blight the night because the West Ham fans weren’t looking for trouble. Hopefully they’ll look into it.
“My family were there and I had friends in that section. You’re hoping they would try and get themselves away from it. I didn’t recognise it because I was too happy.
“Security wanted to take me inside but I had to make sure my players weren’t involved.”
Lucas Paqueta, Aaron Cresswell, and Flynn Downes were all involved in the chaos too and were held back by security and stewards.
Director of football Noble tried in vain to restrain Michail Antonio, who leapt over advertising hoardings to defend the fans and families.
Members of the Irons coaching staff including Kevin Nolan were seen berating stewards for their failure to intervene.
While captain Declan Rice and Jarrod Bowen were also seen confronting members of the crowd, with the former appearing to throw an object in their direction.
In last week’s first leg at the London Stadium, members of Jansen’s family were moved from their seats behind the away dugout after a verbal confrontation with West Ham fans.
Jansen added: “What happened last week was very unfortunate, but I feel a bit ashamed it happened in our stadium.
“It should not be happening. You have to stay in control of your emotions.”
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
