Real Sociedad were defeated 2-1 by Anderlecht in the second league phase in the Europa League, but the match itself was overshadowed by events in the stands at Reale Arena.
A number of Anderlecht supporters targeted La Real fans with fragments of broken seats, having also broken the protective screen that had been set up in the away section. Marca have reported that five of those involved have been arrested.
❌ Los del Anderlecht han llegado, se han cargado una mampara de la zona visitante del Reale Arena, y se han puesto a lanzar trozos de asientos a los aficionados de la Real Sociedad.
🎞️ @aaroox4 pic.twitter.com/bAmx0mrQm6
— GRADA B pro (@GradaBpro) October 3, 2024
La Real are furious about the incident, and also the fact that there was not a proper stoppage of proceedings. Club captain Mikel Oyarzabal called out UEFA when he spoke post-match.
“We need to condemn these things that have happened. They can’t happen. People go home because four imbeciles are throwing things. UEFA has to intervene, but they have done nothing. We were telling the match director because things were falling even on the pitch. We had been saying for fifteen minutes that they had to stop and they did nothing. It is a clear message for UEFA.”
Real Sociedad head coach Imanol Alguacil also criticised the decision to not stop the match, as per Marca.
“They told us what happened and, if our fans were in danger, I understand that the game should have been stopped. I don’t know if he realised it and didn’t want to stop or not, but I understand that the game should have been stopped. It can’t be that our fans, with families and children included, were in danger.”
