Michel Platini faces something of a baptism of fire in his first month as the president of Uefa after a tumultuous opening night of Champions League first knockout round matches. Uefa’s disciplinary committee is sure to be kept busy by events at the Félix-Bollaert stadium in Lens and at the Bernabéu in Madrid, as issues of player discipline and crowd safety came to the fore.The most extraordinary scenes were in Lens, where Lille played Manchester United. After Eric Braamhaar, the Dutch referee, allowed Ryan Giggs’s goal to stand, the ensuing kick-off was sent into touch by Lille and some of their players stormed off the pitch for several minutes in protest.
The farcical scenes were reminiscent of a match between Kuwait and France at the 1982 World Cup when Sheikh Fahid al-Ahmad al-Sabah, the brother of the Emir of Kuwait, ran on to the pitch and ordered his team off after the referee allowed a dubious France goal to stand. Curiously, the match official reversed his decision , though it hardly mattered as France won 4-1.
Uefa is likely to take action against Lille, judging from a precedent in this competition. In 1990-91, AC Milan were playing away to Marseilles in the second leg of their European Cup quarter-final, when, with the French team leading 2-1 on aggregate and two minutes to go, the floodlights at the Stade Vélodrome failed. Milan refused to continue when the lighting was restored. Marseilles were awarded a 3-0 victory and Milan were suspended from all European competition the following year. While such a harsh punishment is unlikely this time, the French club look sure to face at least a fine.
The row followed another, potentially very dangerous, incident when French police appeared to release teargas canisters in the crowded stand housing the United supporters. Nobody was hurt, but there are sure to be calls for an investigation. While police at many continental grounds are equipped with teargas, they are usually under instruction to use it only to disperse crowds in extreme circumstances.
The third incident occurred during Real Madrid’s 3-2 victory over Bayern Munich. The Bernabéu crowd had been booing Bayern’s Holland midfield player, Mark van Bommel, who played for Real’s arch-rivals Barcelona last season, for most of the evening. When Van Bommel scored Bayern’s second goal, he celebrated by repeatedly making an obscene gesture towards the Real supporters.
Platini has pledged to champion sportsmanship and supporters. He has promised to confront cheating and indiscipline and talked about the “human dimension” of the game, railing against overcommercialisation and the exploitation of fans. Last night provided plenty for him to sink his teeth into.