The anticipated derby at Olympic Stadium in Athens between eternal rivals Panathinaikos and Olympiacos was abandoned on Sunday due to violent clashes between fans and police.
Tensions were first evident on the fifth minute, when it is reported that around 15 to 20 fans invaded the area surrounding the pitch. They proceeded to attack those on the Olympiacos bench, and is alleged that one of the hooligans had a knife.
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After a 10 minute pause, the match resumed. There were no issues until the 53rd minute when Olympiacos’ Miguel Angel Guerrero scored. A number of Panathinaikos fans then proceeded to clash with police a few meters out of the stadium.
To disperse the hostile fans, riot police used stun grenades and tear gas.
On the 70th minute, German referee Marco Fritz made the call to abandon the game entirely. The chemicals police used had started to seep into the stadium, and a number of home supporters were on the turf, which he said was a security issue for match officials.
The score at that point was 1-0 in Olympiacos’ favour
The match is expected to be awarded to Olympiacos with a score of 3-0, according to Kathimerini.
Given the game’s abandonment was the fault of Panathinaikos, the team is likely to be deducted six points.
