After winning the Europa Conference League semi-final on Thursday in the Netherlands, a number of West Ham United players' friends and family suffered harassment by AZ Alkmaar fans, according to Dutch media.
At the AZ Stadium, AZ supporters scaled a barrier and assaulted the West Ham team that was seated in a designated area. West Ham players, including captain Declan Rice, tried to stop the incident once it started.
Ten minutes after the incident, when police and stewards raced to the scene to stop any additional altercations, order was re-established.
A comparable occurrence happened last week in London when West Ham supporters confronted AZ supporters, including Pascal Jansen's family, who had been celebrating the goal scored by the Dutch team in the first half of the first leg. This attack is supposed to be in retaliation for the incident in the first leg.
Following his success in leading West Ham United to the Europa Conference League championship game, manager David Moyes expressed his joy at reaching his first European final in his 25-year career. West Ham suffered in the Premier League this season, yet they have 13 wins and a draw in their unblemished European record. However, they are fighting a relegation battle in the Premier League.
"We’ve all but stayed up, and we’re also in a final with a chance of winning a trophy, so there are a lot of positives that have come from it," Moyes said after the 1-0 win in the second leg, as per Sportstar, "I’ve been in football and a manager for a long time, and you don’t get loads and loads of big opportunities."
"To actually get to a final is something that doesn’t happen in many managers’ lifetimes. I’m thrilled that I’ve had one or two, this is my first European one, and it’s something I’m really pleased with."
