The police of Albania have deported over a dozen soccer fans back to Italy following violent clashes in Tirana ahead of Wednesday’s Europa Conference League final, Albania’s deputy head of police said.
Italian club Roma will face Dutch team Feyenoord in the match at the 20,000-capacity National Arena.
“As a result of the violence from the fans of both teams, 10 police officers were injured and a police car was damaged,” Albanian police said in a statement.
The police were attacked by fans wielding glass bottles, sticks, stones and other objects, it added.
“Police have taken 60 people from both fan groups, 48 Italians and 12 Dutch, to the station.”
Two separate groups of Dutch and Italian fans clashed with police on Tuesday in the city, injuring 19 officers and five Albanian civilians. One police officer was injured from a knife attack, authorities said.
Three Italian fans and two Dutch supporters were also injured.
The final is one of the biggest sporting events ever hosted by Albania, with authorities declaring Wednesday a public holiday and closing the main roads in the capital.
With the venue for the final having a capacity of only 21,690, thousands of fans of the Dutch and Italian sides are expected to watch the game in two different fan zones.
“We are determined to guarantee order and security, to prevent property destruction and the normal holding of the sporting activity,” Dervishi said.
Feyenoord and Roma are storied clubs with big fan bases. Up to 100,000 fans are expected in Tirana despite each club being allocated only 4,000 tickets for the inaugural final of the third-tier European tournament.
There are separate “fan zones” for each club, only one kilometer (0.6 miles) apart.