Riot police tackle fans at Millwall

Riot police were called in as violence flared during a cup game between Liverpool and Millwall at the New Den in south-east London.

Seats were torn up and police armed with truncheons struggled to restrain angry supporters as last night's Carling Cup tie descended into mayhem. Away fans claimed the trouble was sparked by chants relating to the Hillsborough disaster of 1989.

Four supporters - three from the Liverpool section and one from the Millwall end - were ejected and 68 seats were ripped up.

Security chiefs at the stadium said seats were also thrown from the upper tier of the stand containing Liverpool supporters, while fans in the lower tier of the away end rushed towards their Millwall rivals.

A disabled Liverpool fan was injured at the perimeter of the pitch as supporters from his own end of the ground poured forward.

Former Liverpool skipper Phil Neal, who works as a co-ordinator for the families involved in the Hillsborough tragedy and was at the game as co-commentator for a Merseyside radio station, said: "I just want to forget about the bad experiences. If it was chants about Hillsborough that started the violence, then it was totally unnecessary. That was 15 years ago and the Heysel Stadium disaster was 19 years ago. Seeing what happened tonight made me rather subdued."