Incidents on the A1: the pathetic story of a Parisian supporter

The serious incidents which preceded the Coupe de France final between OL and PSG are narrated here by a Parisian supporter who took part in the violence observed on the A1.

A few kilometers from the Villeneuve-d’Ascq stadium, the scene of the Coupe de France final between Lyon and Paris on Saturday evening (PSG’s 2-1 victory), the party almost ended in drama in the afternoon while that supporters of both camps rallied by bus to the northern enclosure. At the Fresnes-lès-Montauban tollbooth, in Pas-de-Calais, violent clashes pitted supporters of OL and PSG against each other.

To Agence France Presse, one of the Parisian supporters concerned testified: “ There were around ten Parisian buses, a large number of them passed the toll booth and that’s when we see Lyonnais in identity group t-shirts starting to stone a bus that was still due to pass. We forced the doors of the buses to get out, they were outnumbered. There was an initial exchange of blows, then their bus was stoned, windows were broken, smoke torches were sent and a bus caught fire. »

“Nazi salutes” in the stands?

Obviously an actor in this scuffle, the person named “Auguste” (a first name voluntarily changed to preserve his anonymity) in the context of this story continues: “ The escalation took place very quickly, the windows broken, the flames, we saw friends coming back with bloody faces and then we took iron bars ourselves. (…) There was no desire on our part for violence at the start. The police defended the Lyonnais, and fortunately, because if we had arrived in contact, with numerical superiority, it would have been a butchery. We were gassed, targeted with flashballs and dispersal grenades. »

According to Auguste, given the timing revealed by the exchanges on his phone, the clashes lasted nearly an hour and a half; “ it started around 5:48 p.m. and ended around 7:11 p.m. », he breathes. “ Then, we were able to return to the stadium just before the match, I found the search light, the stewards wanted to avoid excesses, everyone was on the lookout. (…) Within the Auteuil tribune, we have always been in conflict with racist groups. During the confrontation on Saturday, I saw Nazi salutes. »

Like OL, which was quick to comment on these incidents by pointing the finger in particular at the management of the police, PSG officially communicated in the evening, defending its supporters: “ The club would like to point out that its supporters scrupulously respected the travel arrangements of the prefectural decree on this occasion before being attacked. (…) Paris-Saint-Germain would like to express its support for the 20 injured Parisians, three of whom are currently hospitalized, as well as the toll staff. Pending further information, Paris-Saint-Germain, which saw five of its supporters’ buses damaged, reserves the right to file a complaint. »