Liverpool fans criticised

Liverpool football fans have been branded the worst behaved in Europe in a report compiled by undercover police.

European football's governing body, Uefa, will hand a report to the sports minister Richard Caborn later this week, which studies the behaviour of supporters across Europe over the last four years.

The report comes days after Liverpool fans were involved in altercations outside the Olympic Stadium in Athens in the build-up to the European Cup final.

Some supporters managed to get in with forged tickets and others with no ticket at all, while some with genuine tickets were denied entry.

Uefa spokesman William Gaillard said: "The incidents involving Liverpool fans have been well known to us before the trouble at the Champions League final which involved Liverpool fans last week.

"That was just the latest example. What other set of fans steal tickets from their fellow supporters or out of the hands of children? We know what happened in Athens, and Liverpool fans were the cause of most of the trouble there."

In Athens, Liverpool supporters accused the police of using heavy-handed tactics, but Gaillard insists it was not an isolated incident.

He added: "There have been 25 incidents involving Liverpool fans away from home since 2003 and these are in the report, most teams' supporters do not cause any trouble at all."

Liverpool have submitted their own report to Uefa, which criticises security arrangements.

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