Legia Warsaw players released after arrests in Holland

Two Legia Warsaw players have been released after being detained for nearly 24 hours in the Netherlands following a European recreation, the Polish membership mentioned Friday.

The players, Josué of Portugal and Radovan Pankov of Serbia, had been taken off the staff bus and detained Thursday after allegedly injuring a steward following a Europa Conference League match at AZ Alkmaar, which additionally noticed scuffles between visiting supporters and police.

Legia Warsaw mentioned on X, beforehand Twitter, that the 2 are “returning to Poland.”

Earlier, Poland’s authorities and soccer authorities protested the detentions and demanded explanations from Dutch authorities.

Poland’s Foreign Ministry mentioned it has summoned the Dutch ambassador to a gathering on Saturday over the incident.

Dutch police mentioned in an announcement that, opposite to earlier safety agreements with their Polish counterparts and the membership, Legia supporters had arrived to the sport in a disorganized manner and stormed the gates, injuring three cops, considered one of whom misplaced consciousness. Powerful fireworks had been discovered on some supporters, threatening safety, the police mentioned.

Some supporters grabbed batons and pepper fuel from the police, and obtained in with out tickets, the Dutch police assertion mentioned.

After the match, the police sealed some exits, resulting in clashes, based on Polish reporters.

Dutch police and Alkmaar metropolis authorities mentioned in the assertion that Josué and Pankov had been taken off the staff bus by police as a result of they’d injured a steward who later required medical consideration. The two players remained in custody whereas the remainder of the squad returned to Poland.

Dutch Chief Public Prosecutor Digna van Boetzelaer mentioned that the arrest determination “was not taken lightly and was discussed in advance with the police. These are suspects of serious criminal offenses, which the Public Prosecution Service will carefully assess — as in every aspect.”

The Dutch aspect are blaming Legia and their followers for having began the chain of aggression that led to the scuffles with police after Legia misplaced 1-0 to Group E rival Alkmaar on Thursday.

An investigation had been launched, they mentioned.

Poland’s Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, who’s campaigning forward of Oct. 15 parliamentary elections, mentioned he had tasked Poland’s diplomats to analyze the matter.

Morawiecki mentioned on X, beforehand Twitter, that “Polish players and fans must be treated according to law. We do not agree to law violations.”

The secretary basic of Poland’s PZPN Football Federation, Lukasz Wachowski, mentioned he’s demanding explanations from his Dutch counterparts and the European soccer physique UEFA.

UEFA mentioned it was gathering proof to think about potential disciplinary instances. Clubs are held accountable for their followers’ conduct at stadiums for European video games.

Legia president Dariusz Mioduski additionally obtained tough remedy from the police, the Polish reviews added. Mioduski is a Harvard-educated lawyer and a member of the administration board on the Court of Arbitration of Sport.