Euro 2012 throughout its opening week has served as a highly visible platform for social unrest. On Thursday, Croatia's supporters got in on the civil disobedience.
Croatians burned a European Union flag and paraded with posters of Ante Gotovina, a convicted war criminal, in Poznan, Poland, before their nation's Group C match against Italy. They also displayed banners with designs evoking the fascist Ustasa movement, which nominally ruled Croatia as a Nazi protectorate from 1941 to 1944.
At one point, the Croatian fans taunted a small group of Italian supporters. Police monitored the situation but did not act.
Here are some more stories to keep your Thursday rolling:
BENDTNER FACES PUNISHMENT FOR CELEBRATION
Denmark striker Nicklas Bendtner faces punishment from UEFA after raising his shirt and slightly dropping his shorts to reveal a gambling logo while celebrating his second goal in a 3-2 loss to Portugal on Wednesday.
UEFA regulations ban so-called ambush marketing, saying no advertising should appear on players' uniforms or cleats during Euro 2012.
EX-MANAGER LEADS BID TO BUY RANGERS
Former Rangers manager Walter Smith is leading a bid to buy the financially troubled club, collaborating with a pair of Scottish businessmen for an offer believed to be worth about $9 million.
Smith has formally asked English businessman Charles Green, whose consortium was set to buy the club for a slightly smaller price, to step aside.
LAVEZZI SET FOR PSG MOVE
Paris Saint-Germain sporting director Leonardo hinted his club is set to sign Napoli striker Ezequiel Lavezzi in a transfer reported to be worth more than $30 million.
"We have not yet completed the deal," Leonardo said. "Will [Lavezzi] be unveiled to the media next week? We shall see."
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What do you think of the Croatian fans' actions in Poland? Should Bendtner face discipline for his goal celebration? Is Smith the right man to buy Rangers?
Share your thoughts below.
We don’t celebrate it, we actaully go to other countries and do it so our future generations of football fans can celebrate it. Wake up man! No one died in the Afghan and Iraq wars(1,000,000). No Americans, No Iraqis/Afghans. No war crimes here. Out of sight out of mind. “Whats on the television honey?”
So are you saying that this paragraph was inaccurate, or the actions shouldn’t be perceived as bad?
“Croatians burned a European Union flag and paraded with posters of Ante Gotovina, a convicted war criminal, in Poznan, Poland, before their nation’s Group C match against Italy. They also displayed banners with designs evoking the fascist Ustasa movement, which nominally ruled Croatia as a Nazi protectorate from 1941 to 1944.”
Lot of history in Europe especially in the former soviet block, time will heal much of the unrest we are currently seeing. Overall I would say this tournament has to date gone off very well. Very little issues with the racism we were warned about, and outside a few dumb Russian and Croatian fans not so many issues.
That is a good thing hope it continues.
As a Croatian-American, I am at the Euros and was in Poznan Square earlier today. This story is trash journalism and its disappointing to see it on Ives and given credibility.
All that was going on was all the Croatian supporters gathering prior to the match and singing and chanting – no different than the Polish supporters the night before. If a gathering of 5K supporters in a square that are singing peacefully is dangerous – than why have matches.
Oh no – the Croatian fans “taunted” the Italian fans. Have you ever been to a European sporting event where some taunting didn’t go on? Please. The real question is why the Italian fans were so pathetic today – with probably 3k fans in total, compared to 15-20k croats.
Police are in riot gear monitoring Poznan 24/7 – so saying they were “monitoring” the situation is like saying that you can walk down the street right now and buy beer – it’s just a fact and doesn’t need to be mentioned.
Nothing quite speaks respect like throwing urine bags on each other. I wish people showed me more ‘respect’ in life. No I don’t.
This is the difference between Europe and CONCACAF.
The USA and Mexico HATE each other, but the supporters respect each other and have enough decency (and perhaps sobriety) to keep the proceedings light-hearted and let the players do the talking. In Europe, and many parts of South America (looking at YOU, Argentina), the fans feel as though hatred for an opponent transcends sport, and so they take to the streets and act like lunatics.
What a bunch of morons. It’s just a game at the end of the day. I love all my teams to death as well, but you know what? I’m simply not willing to blindly attack another team’s fans simply because they prefer a different squad. That’s utterly ridiculous.
And, without knowing a ton about Croatian-Italian relations, I have to question why these Croatian thugs took it out on Italian supporters? What beef do they have with Italy, other than the fact that their team dives too much and plays dirty?
Rednecks… sorry.
+1. USA has Renecks, Europe has … this.
a bit like hungry eyes, but in want of a liquid?
What are Thursday eyes?
Say what you will about CONCACAF crowds, but they don’t celebrate war criminals or Nazi collaborators.
Maybe Bendtner was just lobbying to be picked up by a Serie A club?
“Here are some more stories to keep your Thursday rolling:”
Should that be “to keep you Thursday EYES rolling” ? What a bunch of morons.
Well that about kills the Dempsey to PSG rumors.
If Bendtner had a Carling tattoo that he showed off, would they be so concerned?