UFC star Paddy Pimblett admitted he was worried about his own safety whilst attending Liverpool 's Champions League final against Real Madrid last weekend.
Liverpool lost out on the trophy after a second-half goal from Vinicius Jr guided Madrid to their 14th triumph in the competition. The scenes before the match sadly overshadowed the 90 minutes of football, as thousands of fans were unable to enter the Stade de France.
French authorities have since claimed there were up to 40,000 fans who arrived at the turnstiles before the match who either had false tickets or no tickets at all. Liverpool fans have claimed they were attacked with tear gas and pepper spray by the French police and that no action was taken to protect them whilst leaving the stadium.
Pimblett, who was in attendance of the match, tweeted: "First time in a very long time I’ve actually been worried about my own safety & I can look after myself! It’s different when there’s groups of 30 men running around wielding machetes robbing people at knife point and beating up defenceless old men.
"Madrid and Liverpool fans are not to blame for anything on Saturday. These were the scenes as I left the ground. In general fear you would be attacked by 20 men with weapons luckily enough we stayed in a pack and they didn’t come near us, just picked on vulnerable old men on their own."
The British government has called for a full investigation into the situation that unfolded at the match. The spokesman for Prime minister Boris Johnson said UEFA's statements don't "chime" with the personal experience of fans who were in attendance.
As the chaos of the situation still looms large, French sports minister Amelie Oudea-Castera has issued an apology to Liverpool fans with genuine tickets who could not get into the ground - but insisted that many of the British fans arrived too late.
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"We are extremely sorry for all those people whose experience has been wasted all that evening," she said. "The people who have bought tickets and were unable to enter the match. This is why I have asked UEFA to work on the compensation system for 2,700 people - including British people - so that they can get compensation.
"The late arrival at the stadium and around the stadium, difficulties in the transportation. Difficulties also to locate the British people who were a little bit everywhere around the stadium. I want to know where exactly they came from and how they arrived at the stadium."
