 MERSEYSIDE’S chief police officer today defended Liverpool fans against allegations of bad behaviour. Speaking for the first time about the Champions League final, Chief Constable Bernard Hogan-Howe attacked the choice of Athens’ Olympic stadium as unsuitable for football. Mr Hogan-Howe also slammed ticketless Reds fans who got into the stadium and he appealed for information about the Merseyside gangs behind a ticket-forging scam. But he said Uefa’s criticism of Liverpool FC supporters was wide of the mark and claimed they were generally well-behaved. Speaking on the police force website, Mr Hogan-Howe said: “The behaviour of Liverpool fans over the last six seasons has, on the whole, been good. “However, as with any club, there are occasional incidents leading to arrests for crime and disorder. But this is the exception rather than the rule.” As well as denying Uefa’s accusations about Red fans, he urged the governing body to learn lessons about the Champions League final. He said: “I have now had the chance to read an initial report by my officers who flew to Athens to offer advice on the championship game. “They need to look closely at the lessons learned from this game, both in terms of ticket allocation and venue suitability. “We believe the stadium was not suitable for a high profile football match. As an athletic stadium, it has its obvious limitations. “Its entry system may not have been as sophisticated as those designed for high turnover crowds at football games. “We know from our own experiences in the UK, that forged tickets are notoriously wide-spread in the run-up to high profile games. “Despite numerous warnings to supporters travelling to Athens, fans still chose to travel on the off chance of buying tickets outside the ground. “We passed on intelligence about this prior to the game.” The chief constable said this information had been passed to the Greek police and the British Consul in Athens. Detectives are currently investigating the gangs which produced and distributed the forged tickets, suspecting they may be linked to drug smuggling operations in Merseyside. Mr Hogan-Howe said: “What we then saw on the night was a minority of selfish supporters who forced their way into the ground, denying access to genuine fans with tickets. “They put people’s safety in jeopardy and tarnished the reputation of genuine football fans. “We are particularly going to make sure that we investigate the problem of forged tickets. If you’ve got any information at all about who is producing these tickets in the Merseyside area, or anywhere else, then contact us immediately.” The Merseyside police report is to be passed to the Sports Minister, Richard Caborn. Anyone with information about forged Athens tickets should call 0151-709 6010 or Crimsetoppers on 0800 555 111. * MERSEYSIDE'S Chief police officer defends Liverpool fans against allegations of bad behaviour in his web video - watch here
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mikehornby@liverpoolecho.co.uk | 
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