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3 months ago
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Serbia are set to backtrack on their threat to quit the Euro 2024 tournament, with UEFA ready to open disciplinary proceedings against Croatia and Albania for their 'Kill the Serb' chant.
The country which lost 1-0 to England on Sunday threatened to quit unless officials imposed a strict punishment on Croatia and Albania, after supporters from both countries sang the shocking chant during their clash on Wednesday.
Croatia and Albania played out an entertaining 2-2 draw in Hamburg, but the quality of the match was overshadowed by the behaviour of fans from both sides who were heard chanting the call to violence in the stands.
All three Balkan nations were part of the former Yugoslav Republic which fell apart in the 1990s, with many Albanians and Croats still harbouring distrust and in some cases hatred towards the Serbs due to a pair of bitter wars that led to hundreds of thousands of deaths.
Albania and Serbia share a particularly troubled relationship over Kosovo - a small territory in the Balkans made up primarily of ethnic Albanians whose independence is not recognised by Belgrade.
The offensive chanting has not gone down well with the authorities in Serbia, with England's Group C rivals threatening to quit the tournament in a move that could have jeopardised the Three Lions' campaign in Europe.
The Times though have reported that UEFA have decided to bring disciplinary proceedings against Croatia and Albania, with Serbia now to backtrack on their threat.
Serbia are set to backtrack on their threat to quit the European Championship
Chants of 'Kill the Serbs' could be heard from both sets of supporters during Croatia's 2-2 draw with Albania
The Serbian FA are angered by the 'scandalous' event. Pictured: Serbian FA President Dragan Dzajic (middle right) and General Secretary Jovan Surbatovic (right)
🇭🇷🇦🇱 Twitter/X is making significant efforts to remove the video of Croatian and Albanian football fans chanting "Kill the Serb!"
🇭🇷🇦🇱 "Kill the Serb!" can be heard from the stands during the football match between Croatia and Albania. pic.twitter.com/EesDbP7hK8
Animosity between Serbia, Albania and Croatia explained
Serbia, Albania and Croatia have a reputation for mutual distrust and in some cases hatred due to longstanding ethnic and political grievances.
Serbia and Albania share a tense history, primarily over the issue of Kosovo. This small country used to be an autonomous province within Serbia, but the majority of its population is made up of ethnic Albanians.
After the Republic of Yugoslavia broke up in the 1990s, tensions in Kosovo increased and culminated in the Kosovo War in 1998, in which ethnic Serbs and Albanians clashed for a year and a half before NATO intervened. Kosovo later declared independence in 2008, but this was not recognised by Serbia.
The two nations are still at loggerheads over the issue today.
The tension between Serbia and Croatia meanwhile stems directly from the 1991-1995 Croatian War of Independence.
Croatia declared independence from Yugoslavia in the summer of 1991 despite resistance from a group of ethnic Serbs, who in turn declared intentions to break away from Croatia.
This erupted into all-out war, with Serbia's nationalist president Slobodan Milosevic instructing his followers to conduct ruthless killings of Croats, who in turn also conducted atrocities against the Serbs.
Milosevic was later charged with war crimes - but the two countries still harbour distrust towards one another over the brutal killings.
A UEFA official reportedly said that Serbia had not made any threat to quit the tournament, despite being in contact with the country's FA.
Serbia's second group game against Slovenia got underway at 2pm, with England facing Denmark in the other Group B game at 5pm.
If Serbia withdraw from the tournament following their game with Slovenia, then final opponents Denmark would be awarded an automatic 3-0 victory which could leave England sweating as they head into their final matches of the group stages.
It would have also put Serbia at risk of being disqualified from Euro 2028.
The chanting follows an earlier incident during Serbia's opening match against England in which a Kosovan TV journalist aimed an Albanian 'eagle' sign towards their fans - another move which prompted anger in Belgrade.
The journalist in question was immediately banned from the remainder of the tournament for 'misconduct'.
But now Serbian authorities are demanding that UEFA also crack down on Croatia and Albania for their fans' behaviour yesterday.
'What happened is scandalous and we will ask UEFA for sanctions, even at the cost of not continuing the competition,' Serbian FA General Secretary Jovan Surbatovic said.
'We are sure that they will be punished, because they have already responded to our appeal to remove the so-called journalist from Albania from the championship.
'We will request UEFA to punish the federations of both selections. We don't want to participate in that, but if UEFA doesn't punish them, we will think about how to proceed.
On Monday the Serbian Football Association was charged by UEFA after their supporters displayed a banner that 'transmitted a provocative message unfit for a sports event' and for throwing objects inside the stadium.
That charge came after the Kosovo Football Federation complained to UEFA about 'Serbian fans displaying political, chauvinistic, and racist messages against Kosovo' during their 1-0 defeat by England.
'We were punished for isolated cases and our fans behaved much better than the others,' Surbatovic said.
'We Serbs are gentlemen and we have an open heart, so I appeal to the fans to remain gentlemen.'
If Serbia had withdrew from Group C in protest, it could have had a knock-on affect in terms of England's tournament.
A Serbian forfeit would hand their upcoming opponents Denmark a 3-0 victory as per UEFA regulations. The team would also likely receive a hefty fine.
Because England has already played Serbia they would not be awarded any extra points, while Denmark would gain three points plus a boost in goal difference.
Albania forward Bekim Balaj is struck by a chair thrown by a Serbian fan as tensions boiled over during the Euro 2016 qualifying clash
Nemanja Gudelj holds the flag while Albania's Bekim Balaj and Andi Lila try to protect it
A masked Serbian supporter runs off with the drone that carried the controversial flag as players watch on in the background
The feuding between Serbia, Albania and Croatia is reminiscent of incidents in previous championships.
When Serbia faced Albania for the first time as independent nations in a qualifier for Euro 2016, the match descended into chaos.
UEFA had banned Albanian fans from attending the fixture in Belgrade in an attempt to prevent any violence, but elected to allow the game to go ahead despite the long-standing political tensions.
The tensions exploded anyway when the Albanian flag, accompanied by a map of Kosovo and the word 'autochthonous' - meaning indigenous - was flown above the pitch by a drone during the game.
Olsi Rama, the brother of Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama, was arrested in the VIP box for allegedly instigating the stunt.
'He was arrested on suspicion that he masterminded and executed the incident in which a flag with a map of greater Albania was flown over the pitch and the terraces, after which the match between Serbia and Albania was abandoned,' Serbian state television said on its official website.
Serbia were eventually awarded a 3-0 victory by UEFA after the game was abandoned, with their FA claiming the team acted with restraint despite being provoked by the 'offensive' banner.
UEFA has appointed an inspector to carry out a disciplinary probe 'regarding alleged discriminatory behaviour'
UEFA has already charged the Albanian FA for fan trouble during the European Championship
An English fan is seen on the ground after being attacked by rivals ahead of the game between Serbia and England
Two officers grapple with a fan after chasing attackers through the streets of Gelsenkirchen
UEFA have already charged the Serbian FA with two offences following their defeat by England on Sunday in Gelsenkirchen - namely the throwing of objects and the transmitting of a provocative message 'unfit for a sports event'.
The latter is understood to relate to the display of a flag linked to a paramilitary movement that was engaged in ethnic cleansing during the Yugoslav wars.
The governing body also launched an investigation into claims monkey noises were aimed at England players during the clash.
An inspector has been appointed to carry out a disciplinary probe 'regarding alleged discriminatory behaviour' - though a resolution is not expected until after the group stages.
That controversy unfolded hours after fans from both teams were involved in a brawl outside a restaurant bar close to the stadium prior to the game.
Footage showed how some fans were left bloody after punches and chairs were thrown in the streets.
German riot police quickly descended on the scene, detaining some participants and prompting others to flee.
Meanwhile, UEFA also directed four charges to the Albania Football Federation for incidents during their 2-1 loss to Italy in Dortmund last week.
The dying moments of the game were interrupted by a pitch invader, resulting in a charge of 'invading the field of play', while other charges included the 'throwing of objects', 'lighting of fireworks' and 'transmitting a provocative message unfit for a sports event'.
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