Manchester United and Tottenham fans have clashed in San Sebastian – 48 miles away from Bilbao – ahead of their Europa League final match on Wednesday night.
An expected total of 80,000 English supporters of both teams have flown out to Spain for the game, which will define the seasons of the two struggling sides, who sit 16th and 17th in the Premier League respectively.
Whoever wins the game will secure a trophy and qualification for next year’s Champions League, while the losers will be left ruing a disastrous season.
It’s also an important game for the fans, who are eager to see their sides lift silverware. For Tottenham, it would be their first in 17 years, while United are keen to win their first trophy under Ruben Amorim.
Things turned ugly before the game, though, with violence breaking out on Tuesday night. Spurs and United fans clashed in San Sebastian – just over an hour’s drive from Bilbao before police arrived.
Information and video shared by Spanish publication El Diario Vasco claimed the situation escalated at around 9.20pm local time. According to witness accounts, the incident started with shouts and insults, before one punch caused one fan to fall to the ground.
Manchester United and Tottenham fans have clashed in Spain ahead of the Europa League final
The incident appeared to see several objects thrown before police arrived to calm the chaos
Spurs and United are bidding for European glory as they look to save their disastrous seasons
A number of fans then appeared to begin throwing objects, with tables also overturned before police arrived, with officers remaining in the area.
Things eventually calmed down once there was a police presence, with no arrests made and no injuries caused.
An ambulance was also reportedly dispatched to treat anyone necessary, but, after a few minor treatments, it was reportedly not deemed necessary to take anyone to hospital.
Manchester United and Tottenham have been allocated 15,000 tickets each for the final inside the San Mames Stadium, which holds around 53,000 fans.
Thousands more, however, had been expected to buy tickets in other parts of the stadium, with others flying out to the city without tickets to their names.
