Football
Liam Twomey, Chelsea correspondent 7y

West Ham, Chelsea condemn crowd trouble during EFL Cup match

LONDON -- West Ham and Chelsea have both publicly condemned the crowd trouble that marred the closing stages of Wednesday's EFL Cup fifth round tie at the London Stadium and pledged to take action against any supporters found to have participated in the disturbances.

Slaven Bilic's men emerged 2-1 winners from the first London derby to take place at the former Olympic venue, but the match was overshadowed by clashes that flared in the wake of Edimilson Fernandes' 48th-minute goal that put West Ham 2-0 up against their rivals, and escalated in the final minutes.

A number of plastic bottles and at least two chairs were ripped from their holdings in the Sir Trevor Brooking Stand and thrown between both sets of supporters, who squared off behind a thin line of stewards.

As the match drew to a close more stadium security were scrambled to come between supporters scuffling on the concourse, and eventually police in riot gear arrived on the scene to disperse the crowd and filter them through separate exits. The Metropolitan Police made seven arrests as a result of the violence.

"West Ham United and London Stadium partners unreservedly condemn the behaviour of individuals involved in incidents during this evening's fixture with Chelsea," a club statement read.

"Whilst quickly brought under control, the club, in line with its clear zero tolerance policy, will work closely with London Stadium 185, the Metropolitan Police Service and Chelsea to identify the individuals involved.

"London Stadium is fitted with a state of the art Panomera CCTV system which provides HD footage of every area of the ground and has led to the successful identification and subsequent banning of 23 individuals already this season.

"Once identified, those found to have acted improperly will be banned from attending any West Ham United fixtures for life and we will request the courts serve banning orders to prevent these individuals attending any other football.

"We must stress that the overwhelming majority of supporters who have visited London Stadium have supported the team exceptionally and behaved impeccably."

A Chelsea spokesman added: "The club is extremely disappointed to see disturbances at the end of tonight's game and we condemn such behaviour. I'm unable to comment further until tonight's incidents have been investigated properly."

West Ham ramped up their security measures ahead of a match widely anticipated to be a potential flashpoint, announcing that fans would face body searches at the turnstiles, alcohol restrictions, postmatch segregation and a "robust policing plan" aimed at minimising crowd trouble.

A heavy police presence was visible around the London Stadium ahead of kick-off, while 1,000 stewards were deployed to manage security inside the arena. West Ham and Chelsea both warned their supporters that any troublemakers would be identified and banned.

Asked about the disturbances after the match, West Ham boss Slaven Bilic said: "I can say only that I noticed it, of course, but I was concentrated on the game. I don't know what happened but whatever happened, we are totally against it as a club and as a team."

Antonio Conte added: "I must be honest -- I didn't see the situation because we were playing. I don't like this type of situation, because it's important to see always the right atmosphere.

"In England we are used to this and it's right to maintain this. This country is [usually] fantastic on this aspect. I'm sorry about this situation."

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