Struggling West Ham, Lille each have fans charge field in frustration on Saturday

Ryan Young
·Staff writer
West Ham United’s Mark Noble clashes with a fan who has invaded the pitch. (Reuters/Peter Cziborra)
West Ham United’s Mark Noble clashes with a fan who has invaded the pitch. (Reuters/Peter Cziborra)

It was a rough day for fans of two European soccer clubs on Saturday, and they made sure to let their respective teams know.

Following its 1-1 draw with Montpellier, fans of the French club Lille charged onto the pitch to confront players. Stewards rushed out to try to fend off about 200 fans, who were chanting insults and showing their frustration with the club. Striker Nicolas Pepe was even reportedly kicked in the leg by fans.

Lille is in 19th place in the league, and is fighting to avoid relegation.

A similar scene played out in the English Premier League, though on a smaller scale.

Multiple fans made it onto the field at the Olympic Stadium during a match between West Ham and Burnley on Saturday.

After Ashley Barnes scored to give Burnley the lead in the 66th minute, a fan ran onto the field while security seemed absent. West Ham captain Mark Noble decided to take matters into his own hands, throwing the fan to the ground and keeping him there until stewards could escort him off the field.

After Burnley took a 2-0 lead just minutes later, another fan ran onto the field, picking up the corner flag and then planting it in the center circle.

West Ham is struggling to stay in the Premier League, and is sitting just three points above the relegation zone. Fans, who clearly aren’t happy about the teams performance, reportedly gathered beneath the owners’ box at the stadium in protest, making “throat-slitting gestures” and chanting “sack the board.”

“There is no place at any level of the game for what happened at the London Stadium,” the Premier League said in a statement. “While the official investigation of the incidents will be carried out by the Football Association, we will be asking our own questions of West Ham United about what happened this afternoon, especially to ensure similar events never reoccur.”


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