Euro 2012 police fear Ukraine thugs

Security was being stepped up in Donetsk today after England football fans were threatened with attacks by nationalist thugs before tomorrow’s Euro 2012 match against Ukraine.

Police and England supporters’ representatives appealed for fans not to be “provoked” and promised that they would be protected.

Host country Ukraine could be out of the tournament after the match. Donetsk’s hardcore hooligans are threatening violence towards visitors, particularly blacks and Asians from England.

As more than 10,000 supporters began arriving in the industrial port, assistant chief constable Andy Holt, of the Association of Chief Police Officers, said: “We always knew that if England ended up in the last game of the group stage playing Ukraine and both needed something out of the game, it would be a very tense atmosphere.

“This will be the most challenging operation in Ukraine thus far. It poses a challenge because some Russian fans throughout this tournament haven’t behaved particularly well.

“What I don’t want is Russian fans wearing England shirts misbehaving, and then England fans being blamed.”

Stickers appeared around the city promising violent clashes with England supporters. A member of Shakhtar Donetsk’s Za Boys was reported to have said: “Ukraine will become a graveyard to English fans. It will be a glorious day.”