What must have been a highlight of the Copa America semi-final in Charlotte on Wednesday evening degenerated into more of a bar brawl when several Uruguay players, including Darwin Nunez and captain Jose Maria Gimenez, clashed with Colombian fans within the stands after the ultimate whistle.
They were ugly, chaotic and extraordinary scenes that marred an exciting match and raised serious questions on the safety measures on the Bank of America Stadium and CONMEBOL's decision to host a match of this magnitude at a venue that was getting used for the primary time in the course of the tournament.
Another match might be played at the identical stadium on Saturday, when Uruguay face Canada in a third-place match. By then, investigations will certainly be needed to unravel the total sequence of events that led to the ugly scenes that circulated on social media after Colombia's 1-0 victory.
Nunez was visibly upset after being involved in an incident through which blows were exchanged and objects were thrown in certainly one of the lower tier blocks where the families and friends of the Uruguayan players were near the Colombian fans.
Darwin Nunez went to the stands after the sport (Nick Tre. Smith/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
A mix of anger and frustration may very well be heard within the voices of the Uruguayan players afterwards.
“It's a total disaster,” said Gimenez, Uruguay's captain. “There wasn't a single policeman there. They only arrived half an hour later. A disaster. And we were there, standing up for ourselves and our loved ones.”
“Hopefully the organizers will be a little more careful with our families, the people and the people around the stadiums. Because this happens at every game. Our families suffer because of some people who have a few drinks and don't know how to drink and behave like children.”
The Uruguayan Football Federation (AUF) has said it’s going to analyse all of the footage before making an official grievance, however it is evident that the AUF believes it was an oversight to place the players' friends and families in the identical area because the Colombian fans with none separation.
“I think there should have been some kind of barrier, especially because it was known practically from the beginning of the tournament that Colombian fans would buy 95 percent of the tickets and it could be complicated in that area (of the stadium),” said Ignacio Alonso, the president of the AUF.
As for the actions of Nunez, Gimenez and others, Alonso stressed that their behaviour was to be expected under the circumstances. “The Uruguayan players reacted instinctively, doing what is natural: defending and protecting the children who were in that part of the stands, the women who were being attacked, the wives, fathers, children and brothers who were there. It is the instinctive reaction of a father,” he added.
The backdrop to all that is that emotions had been running high within the stadium all evening – Colombia played the whole second half with ten men after Daniel Munoz was shown a red card shortly before half-time – however it was the ultimate whistle after seven minutes of added time that brought the primary of two flashpoints.
First, a scuffle broke out within the centre circle, where greater than 40 players and staff had gathered immediately after the match. Some players from Colombia and Uruguay were hugging one another, while others – including Uruguay's Luis Suarez and Colombia's Miguel Borja – were involved in an altercation. There was also heavy pushing and shoving elsewhere, but at first glance nothing serious was apparent.
But shortly afterwards, several Uruguay players sprinted towards the sideline, to an area to the correct of their team bench. At first it was unclear what was happening, except that some children wearing Uruguay shirts were being carried onto the sector from the lower tier.
Videos that later emerged provided a fuller picture, showing Nunez climbing into the stands alongside Gimenez and Barcelona defender Ronald Araujo and angrily confronting Colombian fans. As things got more heated, Nunez appeared to have been punched by a fan. The Liverpool striker also appeared to throw a punch back.
“Some of the players had wives, young children, their parents, elderly relatives… They went to see how they were doing,” Suarez said. “Then these things started happening, the images you saw. They (Nunez, Gimenez and others) tried to protect their families. From what I saw, many relatives and children were affected. In this situation, you are powerless.”
Things got crazy within the semi finals!! Right up my alley! Hope everyone seems to be doing well pic.twitter.com/oyDQM0d9Ik
— Lloyd Sam (@MrLloydSam) July 11, 2024
Contrary to what Gimenez suspected, law enforcement officials were on site. However, it took them greater than 60 seconds to bring the situation under control and so they needed to depend on the assistance of security forces.
Earlier, a scuffle threatened to interrupt out when other Uruguay players and staff members intervened and climbed over seats. Video footage appears to indicate Rodrigo Bentancur throwing an object of some kind into the world.
Nunez, however, was visibly still offended and deeply upset about every part that had happened when he got here down from the stands. The striker grabbed a chair, bumped into an area where Colombian fans were frightening him and threw it against the wall below, where a few of the Uruguayan substitutes dragged him away.
Nunez appeared extremely emotional on the time, and was consoled by certainly one of the Uruguayan staff on the pitch, in addition to by Suarez and Luis Diaz, the Colombian striker who plays alongside him for Liverpool.
When the dust settled and the fans left the stadium, the Uruguayan players were still on the pitch with their children. Matias Vina had a baby in his hands at one point, Nicolas de la Cruz sat on the bottom along with his daughter on his lap and Nunez was later photographed with a toddler on his shoulder.
Mathías Viña along with his baby in his arms. The Uruguayan players reacted after they saw that their families were surrounded within the stands by opposing fans who had already made crosses in the course of the match. pic.twitter.com/eaOuNfKlq4
— Sebastian Amaya (@sebaamaya) July 11, 2024
Uruguay's players looked as in the event that they were in shock. “It was an ugly moment,” said Sergio Rochet, the Uruguayan goalkeeper. “It's not nice to see these problems, especially when your family is just two meters away. We are sad to be eliminated from the tournament and now we have to deal with this situation.”
“From what I saw, they (the fans) started throwing things. You try to stay away from it, but when you see that it's your family, young children, it's difficult. I was surprised by the lack of empathy from the Colombian players. I think they should have come to calm things down.”
Like many others within the stadium, Uruguay coach Marcelo Bielsa initially had no idea what was happening. He said he initially thought his players “were thanking the Uruguayan fans for their support. But then I learned there were other types of unfortunate difficulties.”
As for CONMEBOL, the South American football confederation issued an announcement through which it made no mention of any problems related to the shortage of organization of the stadium – which was evident in some ways on Wednesday evening – or security issues.
“CONMEBOL strongly condemns any act of violence that affects football,” it said. “Our work is based on the belief that football connects and unites us through its positive values. There is no room for intolerance and violence on or off the field. We invite everyone to cheer on their national teams with all their passion in the remaining days and celebrate an unforgettable party.”
image credit : www.nytimes.com