Serbian National Coach Argues Albania Responsible For Match Cancellation

The manager of Serbia's national football team, Dick Advocaat, argued that their Albanian opponents were responsible for the cancellation of last Tuesday's Euro 2016 qualifier match.



In a statement published on the Serbian Football Federation's official website, Advocaat explained that:  "It was a provocative act intended to hurt the feelings of the Serbian nation. UEFA will have to deal with this problem seriously. Repeating the match would spark tensions around the world."



"I am pleased with the attitude of my players, who demonstrated a high level of professionalism and sporting culture. It is regrettable that Serbia did not have the chance to score an important victory in front of its own supporters. Despite of everything, I believe that we will keep up the good work and quality performances and achieve the results that will enable us to accomplish our common objective of qualifying for Euro 2016 in France," Advocaat added.



Last Tuesday's Euro 2016 qualifier match between Albania and Serbia was abandoned after a Serbian player wrenched a flag from a remote controlled drone carrying a map of so-called Greater Albania, which included parts of Serbia, Montenegro, Macedonia and Greece. 



The incident caused chaos both on the field and in the stands.



 



Albania demands victory



 



Meanwhile, the Albanian Football Association claimed that the victory must be given to their team due to the violence they suffered at the hands of Serbian players before, during and after the match.



The Association said in a statement that for the duration of pre-match warm-ups, as well as during the game itself, offensive chants such as "Kill the Albanians" and "Death to Albanians" were sung by the 30,000 strong crowd.



"The Albanian Anthem was heavily booed and whistled over, so much so that it was impossible to hear it in the stands or on television," the statement says.



The Albanians claimed that stones, hard objects, lighters and pyrotechnics were thrown at the pitch and that video footage makes clear that these actions damaged the game's atmosphere.



"Civilians entered the pitch causing a melee by punching Albanian players and hitting them with stools. Furthermore, our players were also hit by stewards and security personnel working at the game," the Albanian Football Association said, adding that when "making their way through the tunnel and to the dressing rooms, Albanian players were repeatedly hit by Serbian supporters, security personnel and the police."



www.aa.com.tr/en - Sırbistan