New footage from Alkmaar shows West Ham midfielder Flynn Downes throwing punches at Dutch hooligans as they advanced towards families of Hammers stars
New footage has emerged to show West Ham midfielder Flynn Downes throwing punches towards AZ Alkmaar’s hooligans, after their Europa Conference League semi-final descended into chaos on Thursday night.
The Hammers secured a 1-0 win on the night after Pablo Fornals struck in injury time, taking them through to the final of the competition with a 3-1 win on aggregate.
However the historic result – which saw West Ham qualify for their first European final in 47 years – was marred by the abhorrent scenes that ensued afterwards.
A horde of violent Alkmaar fans, clad in all-black and hooded to hide their identities, forced their way into the away stands to trade blows with West Ham supporters at the final whistle.
The scrap quickly spiralled out of control as dozens of hooded hooligans flooded into the section holding the family and friends of West Ham’s victorious players.
West Ham midfielder Flynn Downes thrw punches as he defended himself on Thursday night
The scrap threatened to turn particularly nasty as fans fended off hooded thugs before players launched themselves into the stands to help
Riots in the stands after the UEFA Conference League semi-final match between AZ Alkmaar and West Ham United FC
Without hesitation, West Ham’s Michail Antonio and Flynn Downes leapt over the hoardings and made a beeline for the stands, closely followed by team-mates Lucas Paqueta and Said Benrahma in an attempt to stop the chaos.
New footage shows that Downes was involved in a physical altercation on the night, as he delivered punches in the midst of the chaos.
The former Swansea midfielder was seen backtracking as several Alkmaar hooligans tried to attack him, with several stewards seen close to him.
Shocking footage from the stands also saw brave West Ham supporters desperately trying to hold back the stream of Alkmaar ultras from attacking the families, while others stood atop a stairwell duking it out blow-for-blow with the oncoming horde.
Just as it looked as though the violence was set to descend into an all-out brawl, security teams managed to force their way into the melee and separate the crews, with other guards jumping in to hold back the furious West Ham players.
After the game, manager David Moyes said: ‘I can’t explain what happened and why it happened.
‘Players were involved because it was the family section… that was probably the reason for the reaction.
‘I don’t want that in any way to blight the night because the West Ham fans weren’t looking for trouble. Hopefully they’ll look into it.
‘My family were there and I had friends in that section. You’re hoping they would try and get themselves away from it… I didn’t recognise it because I was too happy.’
Lucas Paqueta (right)and Said Benrahma (left) were also among the players to step in
