Euro 2016

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European Championship | Qualifiers

Mar 27, 2015 at 7.45pm UK

Montenegro
0-3
Russia

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Football

Montenegrin FA blasts fans after abandoned qualifier with Russia

By Sam McEvoy, Reporter | 28 March 2015

The Montenegrin FA blasts fans that threw missiles at players during the abandoned Group G qualifier between Montenegro and Russia.

The Montenegrin FA has condemned fans that threw missiles at players during Montenegro's Group G qualifier with Russia.

Two Russian players were hit with objects thrown from the crowd, one being a flare that left 'minor burns' on Russia goalkeeper Igor Akinfeev.

Momir Djurdjevac, the general secretary for the Montenegrin FA, has branded his own country's fans as "barbarians" after the Euro 2016 qualifying match was postponed.

"These fans sing 'Montenegro, we love you' but throw flares, insult rivals and cause all sorts of incidents every time they turn up and that's outright hypocrisy," Djurdjevac told the press after the match.

"We have left the impression of barbarians and this is a complete disaster. It seems we don't deserve to have a nation, a football team or a berth in a major tournament. As far as I am concerned, the game should not have continued after the first-minute incident. We can only thank God that no-one was seriously hurt.

"We will, in all likelihood, pay a hefty fine and say goodbye to a major tournament but what scares me is that this can happen again. Someone must step forward and say 'enough'. Who wants to play for the national team under such circumstances? These players have a big dream and it's to qualify with our tiny nation for a major tournament but we are going nowhere."

Russia head coach Fabio Capello also shares the same viewpoint as Djurdjevac, believing that the match should have ended after the first flare was thrown.