Liverpool fined for bus attack while City boss Pep Guardiola is banned
UEFA dishes out punishments for disturbances during the Champions League quarter-final tie between the Premier League sides.
Liverpool have been fined 20,000 Euros (£17,567) for disturbances at the Champions League quarter-final first leg in April, which included an attack on the Manchester City bus, UEFA announced on Monday.
City boss Pep Guardiola has also been suspended by UEFA for one match for his dismissal in the second leg of the tie, with a further match ban suspended for one season.
Liverpool were also fined a total of 9,000 Euros (£7,904) for setting off fireworks in the second leg with City and the second leg of the semi-final at Roma.
Liverpool’s main punishment was for the “setting off of fireworks, throwing of objects, acts of damage and crowd disturbances” at the Anfield clash with the Premier League champions, UEFA said.
City’s bus was pelted with bottles and cans ahead of the match, which Liverpool won 3-0, and the visitors had to find a replacement for the return journey to Manchester after at least one window was smashed.
The Reds, runners-up in the tournament as Real Madrid won a 13th title in Kiev last month, condemned the behaviour as “completely unacceptable” in the immediate aftermath.
Protests from the City boss over a disputed penalty and a strike ruled out incorrectly for offside went too far for the official, who banished Guardiola to the stand.
Guardiola said afterwards: “I said he was wrong. I didn’t insult him. I just said it was a penalty and it was a goal.”
European football’s governing body published the disciplinary verdicts for cases heard on May 31, with one involving a Russia 2018 World Cup host city.
Zenit St Petersburg were fined a total of 70,000 Euros (£61,476) for offences at the Europa League last-16 tie with Red Bull Leipzig.
A 50,000 Euros (£43,911) fine was imposed on Zenit for “the racist behaviour of its supporters”, UEFA said, with the club ordered to play their next home game in UEFA competition behind closed doors.
FARE Network, the European wide anti-discrimination group, reported the offences during the match to UEFA and the governing body has now acted.
Atletico Madrid were fined 18,000 Euros (£15,808) for blocking stairways in their Europa League semi-final second-leg win over Arsenal last month.
Meanwhile, Barcelona received a warning for “the throwing of balloons” in their quarter-final first leg with Roma.