Nottingham Forest faced Turkish side Fenerbahce in the Europa League play-offs last month
Nottingham Forest defender Neco Williams kicks away a flare during the Europa League clash with Fenerbahce at the City Ground(Image: Getty)
Fenerbahce have been ordered to pay Nottingham Forest the cost of repairs to the City Ground following damage sustained when the teams met last month.
The Reds hosted the Turkish outfit on February 26 for the second leg of their Europa League play-off. Vitor Pereira’s side lost 2-1 on the night but progressed to the last 16 4-2 on aggregate thanks to their 3-0 triumph in Istanbul earlier in the month.
Early on in the clash Trentside, pyrotechnics were thrown from the away end on to the pitch. Meanwhile, after the game, several social media posts showed damage reportedly sustained to seating in the away end.
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UEFA have now confirmed action has been taken against Fenerbahce. The governing body’s Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body (CEDB) has dished out a fine, a ban on away ticket sales for one European match and an instruction to pay Forest for damage caused.
The charges against Fenerbahce related to throwing of objects, lighting of fireworks and “acts of damage caused to the stadium and/or its installations”.
UEFA state: “The CEDB has decided: To fine Fenerbahçe SK €30,000 (£26,000) and to ban Fenerbahçe SK from selling tickets to its away supporters for the next one (1) UEFA competition match, for lighting and throwing of fireworks; To fine Fenerbahçe SK €20,500 (£17,700) for acts of damage; To order Fenerbahçe SK to contact Nottingham Forest FC within 30 days from the notification of this decision for the settlement of the damages caused by its supporters, i.e. for the damaged seats.”
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During the game, Reds players were forced to dodge flares after fans from Fenerbahce had thrown pyrotechnics on to the pitch at the start of the match. The incident led to a three-minute delay as flares were launched into the Forest penalty area.
Defender Jair Cunha had to take evasive action as he had his back to them, while full-back Neco Williams also had to duck as he tried to carry one away. Fenerbahce defender Archie Brown had to intervene and carry some of the pyrotechnics off the pitch while urging calm from his side’s fans.
After getting past Fenerbahce, the Reds saw off Danish team FC Midtjylland in the last 16 of the competition and are now in the quarter-finals. They will take on Porto over two legs for a place in the semi-finals, with the first leg in Portugal on April 9 followed by the return at the City Ground the following Thursday.
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