Skip to content

Feyenoord v Roma labelled 'high-risk' by police

The Barcaccia (Sunken Boat) fountain after being damaged by Feyenoord fans
Image: Dutch fans caused havoc in the Piazza di Spagna area of Rome

The second leg of the Europa League clash between Feyenoord and Roma on Thursday has been labelled high-risk by police in Rotterdam, with security stepped up after Dutch fans caused havoc in the Italian capital in last week's round-of-32 first leg

Local media has described the encounter as a vendetta match after Italian supporters took to social media to talk of their revenge, with around 2,700 of them travel to the city.

This comes after Feyenoord fans left Rome looking like a war zone before last week's first leg which ended 1-1, when they caused trouble in the famous Piazza di Spagna area.

A number of Italian police will assist their Dutch counterparts in identifying any potential troublemakers.

Local police stand guard near the Barcaccia (Sunken Boat) fountain after it was damaged by Feyenoord fans ahead of an Europa League football match
Image: Feyenoord travel to Rome after drawing 1-1 in the first leg

"They'll be there because they know the AS Roma fans well, they can for instance tell us who exactly we need to keep an eye on," said Rotterdam police spokesman Gijs van Nimwegen.

"As with all high-risk matches, the riot police will be ready to intervene if needed," he continued.

The majority of Roma fans will travel to Feyenoord's De Kuip arena by specially allocated train after landing in the country.

More from Europa League Round Of 32 2015

Feyenoord's 40,000-capacity stadium will be open earlier than usual, with the two sides' fans separated by large buffer zones and extra stewards.

Around Sky