Serbia threatens to quit Euro 2024 over chants by rival fans
Serbia has officially threatened to withdraw from Euro 2024 if two other teams are not punished by UEFA. Jovan Surbatovic, a Serbian soccer exec, revealed on Thursday that he submitted a complaint against both Albania and Croatia. The official accused fans of the two teams of singing offensive songs directed towards Serbia.
Albania and Croatia faced off on Wednesday in Hamburg in what turned out to be an epic matchup. Croatia netted two second-half goals in as many minutes to take a late lead in the fixture. Albanian midfielder Klaus Gjasula, however, scored a goal deep into added time to shake things up. The epic game eventually ended in a 2-2 draw.
Although the match was exciting on the pitch, fans in the stands unfortunately resorted to insulting chants. Both sets of supporters were heard singing songs about murdering Serbians. Surbatovic alleges that the sets of fans chanted “Kill, kill, kill the Serb” back and forth to each other.
Serbia recently charged for offensive fan behavior
Interestingly enough, Serbia was charged by UEFA on Monday after some of their fans displayed an offensive banner in their matchup with England the previous day. Select Serbian supporters also threw objects onto the pitch during the game as well.
The banner in question was reportedly a derogatory message against Kosovo. The two countries have a tense history and Serbia does not currently recognize Kosovo as an independent nation. Serbian fans then sang “Kosovo is the heart of Serbia” in Munich on Thursday ahead of their match with Slovenia.
Despite the actions by Serbia, Surbatovic asked that UEFA charges Albania and Croatia. “First of all, I want to thank our fans for their support in the match against England and I hope we will beat Slovenia,” said Surbatovic.
“What happened [in the Albania-Croatia game] is scandalous and we will ask UEFA for sanctions, even if it means not continuing the competition. If UEFA doesn’t punish them, we will think about how to proceed.”
“We were punished for isolated cases and our fans behaved much better than the others. One fan was punished for racist insults and we don’t want it to be attributed to others. We Serbs are gentlemen and we have an open heart.”
Serbia fights back to earn a point in a late comeback against Slovenia
Despite Surbatovic’s demands, Serbia looked almost certain to potentially be out of the tournament on Thursday anyway. The Eagles found themselves down 1-0 against Slovenia in Munich thanks to a goal from defender Žan Karničnik. A loss would have essentially put Serbia behind the eight-ball heading into their final match of Group C.
Nevertheless, Luka Jovic scored a goal seconds from the final whistle to help Serbia grab a point. The result keeps the Eagles at the bottom of the group. A possible victory in their next game, however, could help them move on to the knockout round. Assuming they remain in the competition, Serbia next faces Denmark on June 25th for a chance to qualify for the round of 16.
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