Things got ugly — and bloody — during the Europa Conference League final Wednesday.
During the 35th minute in the first half of the match, Fiorentina’s Cristiano Biraghi was set to take a corner kick when trash came raining down on the field from some West Ham supporters.
In a disturbing turn, Biraghi was struck on the head by at least one of the objects that reached the field.
While the defender tried to play off the incident, he was left with a cut on the back of his head as blood dripped down the back of his head and neck.
Biraghi received some medical attention on the field but was able to remain in the game, won 2-1 by West Ham, after he had some purple gauze placed around his head.
It was not the first incident of objects being thrown on the field during the tense game and, according to Sky News, West Ham fans were specifically warned to not toss any other objects onto the field.
According to the BBC, it wasn’t the only issue surrounding the contest, as 16 people were arrested at a bar before the match even took place after Italian fans went after West Ham diehards.
After the game, West Ham released a statement against the unruly fans, adding that the club would ban any supporters identified as having thrown trash from attending any further games at London Stadium or traveling with the team.
“West Ham United unreservedly condemn the behavior of a small number of individuals who threw objects onto the pitch during tonight’s UEFA Europa Conference League final,” West Ham said in the statement, according to multiple outlets.
“These actions have no place in football, and do not in any way represent the values of our football club and the overwhelming majority of our supporters, who have behaved impeccably in Prague this week and throughout our last two seasons in European competition.”
Despite all the chaos on and off the field, the game continued without further incident as the two teams were locked in a tight one into the waning minutes.
With the score knotted at 1-1 in the 90th minute, West Ham’s Jarrod Bowen received a through ball in the attacking end and finished his chance with a game-winning goal.
With the victory, West Ham won its first major trophy of any kind since 1980.
