JASON McATEER has hit out at UEFA and French authorities after claiming his son was attacked and his wife mugged after the Champions League final.
Former midfielder McAteer described the organisation of Saturday's final in Paris between Liverpool and Real Madrid as a 'shitshow'.
He is one of several former footballers who played for both Ireland and Liverpool to criticise the authorities after enduring a negative experience in the French capital.
Liverpool have called for an investigation into events surrounding the game, amid reports that ticket holders were tear-gassed and forced to queue for almost three hours to get in.
McAteer, who made 139 appearances for Liverpool and won 52 caps for Ireland, took to Twitter to reveal his own family's experience after the game.
"Last night was disgusting," he tweeted on Sunday morning.
"My son attacked [and] my wife mugged.
"@UEFAcom very accountable as well as ground stewards and French police.
"Hope everyone is getting out of this shitshow safely."
Last night was disgusting. My son attacked my wife mugged @UEFAcom very accountable as well as ground stewards and French police. Hope everyone is getting out of this shitshow safely. #LFC #LFCFamily
— Jason Mcateer (@MCATEER4) May 29, 2022
McAteer's claims echo those of former Liverpool and Ireland defender Jim Beglin, who said gangs were mugging fans leaving the ground.
"Post-match last night was the scariest I’ve ever experienced," he tweeted.
"Organised gangs set about mugging departing fans.
"We ran a gauntlet of thuggery on our way to the Metro. Not a police officer in sight.
"Witnessed so many ambush attacks on unsuspecting attendees. Reprehensible @UEFA."
Post-match last night was the scariest I’ve ever experienced. Organised gangs set about mugging departing fans. We ran a gauntlet of thuggery on our way to the Metro. Not a police officer in sight. Witnessed so many ambush attacks on unsuspecting attendees. Reprehensible @UEFA
— Jim Beglin (@jimbeglin) May 29, 2022
Like Beglin, former Ireland international David Meyler also said he feared for his safety.
"Tonight is the first time in my life [that] I've been scared entering a football ground. UEFA you should be ashamed of yourselves," he tweeted.
Meanwhile John Aldridge, who played as a striker for Liverpool and Ireland, has claimed that Reds fans were treated 'nearly as bad as we were at Hillsborough'.
Alongside the comment 'good riddance', Aldridge shared a video ahead of his departure this morning.
"Alright folks, this is our plane, can't wait any longer to get out of this hole," says Aldridge, who was commentating on the game for LFCTV.
"It's minging, the police are minging, everything around the stadium is minging.
"Some of our fans have been treated nearly as bad as we were at Hillsborough, absolute disgrace.
"Au revoir, I won't be here ever again in my life."
Good riddance!!! pic.twitter.com/mKacFd4XqL
— John Aldridge (@Realaldo474) May 29, 2022
UEFA initially claimed the game was delayed by more than half-an-hour due to fans arriving late.
In a later statement, the organisation claimed that thousands of Liverpool fans had purchased fake tickets that wouldn't work on turnstiles, causing a build-up at the gate.
"As a result, the kick-off was delayed by 35 minutes to allow as many fans as possible with genuine tickets to gain access," added UEFA.
"As numbers outside the stadium continued to build up after kick-off, the police dispersed them with tear gas and forced them away from the stadium."
However, Merseyside Police disputed this, claiming its match observers reported fans were in time and well behaved.
In a statement, they said: "As with all European matches officers from Merseyside were deployed in France to work in an observatory and advisory capacity with the local officers, and they have reported the vast majority of fans behaved in an exemplary manner, arriving at turnstiles early and queuing as directed and their observations will be passed on to the relevant authorities as part of the debrief for the game."
The match was settled by a Vinícius Júnior goal on 59 minutes to give Real their 14th title.
See More: Champions League, Jason McAteer, Liverpool, UEFA
