ASTON Villa football fans were ‘deliberately targeted’ by violent Paris hooligans before a game set to be attended by Prince William today, The Sun can reveal.
The attack took place late on Tuesday night in Pigalle – a red light district of the French capital which includes the Moulin Rouge cabaret.
Opposing sets of fans throw punches in a huge brawl[/caption]
Fans hurl chairs and other missiles at each other[/caption]
Pint glasses can be seen flying[/caption]
Nightspots including O’Sullivan’s – an Irish pub – were full of fans from Birmingham enjoying a drink before Wednesday’s crunch Champions League quarter final against Paris Saint Germain (PSG).
An investigating source linked to the French police told the Sun: “That’s when the trouble started.
“A large gang of PSG ultras, many of them with hoods pulled up, turned up ready for a fight.
“They knew who they were looking for – anybody supporting Aston Villa. The Aston Villa fans were deliberately targeted.”
Shocking footage from the attack shows the PSG fans attacking the English fans outside the Irish pub.
The aggressive fans can be seen throwing glasses and chairs, before starting fist fights.
The cops were called to the scene but did not arrive in time to make any arrests of the PSG attackers, who were “extremely well organised,” said the source.
The source added: “Gangs like this are used to carrying out these types of attacks – they hit hard, and then melt away into the night”
A local police spokesman said there were “no arrests”, and no reports of any serious injuries during the attacks.
But he added that the video was “being looked at”.
The Champions League 1st leg tie, which will be played at the Parc des Princes, is classified as having a risk level of 3 out of 5, signifying a “moderate but real risk of incidents,” said the spokesman.
He warned some 3,000 Villa fans in the French capital – 1,000 of them without tickets – to be “on their guard”.
These are expected to include Prince William, a massive Villa supporter, who has been invited to the game by PSG.
He is said to be keen to attend while his expat brother, Prince Harry, attends a court case in London after travelling to the UK from the United States.
While there is no serious history of rivalry between Villa and PSG two sets of fans, the French are known to be raging at Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez for arriving in Paris wearing a cap with an Argentina crest over a French cock.
Martinez played a huge part in Argentina’s defeat of France in the 2022 World Cup Final in Qatar, leaving Paris fans furious.
Paris hooligans are also notorious for wanted to “test themselves” against English fans, according to a PSG source.
France has experienced a big rise in football hooliganism over the last five seasons.
And the French Interior Ministry has just announced a ban on Legion X, ultras linked to Paris FC, after repeated horror attacks on rival fans.
This comes after a match between Marseille and Lyon had to be called off after Lyon’s team bus was attacked on the way to the game.
Stones and beer bottles were hurled at the bus leaving its windows shattered.
The attack left Lyon‘s coach Fabio Grosso with horrifying facial injuries.
Grosso needed 13 stitches in total after being treated.
Aston Villa’s Youri Tielemans attends a press conference ahead of the game with Paris Saint-Germain and Aston Villa[/caption]
English star Marcus Rashford training with Aston Villa ahead of their UEFA Champions League game[/caption]
PSG come into the quarter finals after a huge win over Liverpool[/caption]