Burnley's pre-season friendly against Hannover 96 was abandoned this afternoon.
Trailing 1-0 at half-time, Hannover's fans attempted to attack Burnley's fans, a week before the Premier League begins. Supporters of the German club also attacked police officers as what was expected to be a relaxed atmosphere at Turf Moor, quickly turned toxic.
The teams did not return to the field for the second-half, with the game being abandoned on the advice of Lancashire Police.
Footage showed the Hannover fans in chanting on their way to the stadium, and once inside Turf Moor, they turned their attention to the opposing fans.
Hannover 96 fans in Burnley today pic.twitter.com/NbdQKFE2gp
— Football Away Days (@footyawayday) August 5, 2017
Ben Mee scored the game's only goal just before half-time. He can clearly be seen telling the fans to calm down after he scored.
JUST THE GOALS | Ben Mee gives the Clarets the lead against Hannover 96. pic.twitter.com/4WSLeAmqbQ
— Burnley FC (@BurnleyOfficial) August 5, 2017
Despite the premature end to the match, Sean Dyche told Burnley's website he fully supported the decision to call off the match at half-time.
We went on police advice. We are still kind of piecing together the details but the police decided to make a decision and we fully support that, from myself and the team and the club.
The referee came to see me and said he wanted us in the room just to get a feel for our general thoughts.
I made it clear. It comes down to safety. The police decided to call it off and we support that.
We understand that. It’s important what the team do, but it’s not as important as people coming to a football match. You want safety. You don’t want people to get hurt.
It’s a shame what has happened but it’s done, as simple as that.
Despite Dyche's comments, both Burnley and Hannover still have to comment on the unsavoury scenes. Burnley's Premier League campaign begins against reigning champions Chelsea.
