PSG and Aston Villa supporters had the night before the first stage of their quarter-final-equal game of the Champions League collided as the French Ministry of the Interior against rising violence of football fans.
Aston Villa and PSG fans are bumping into the streets of Paris on the eve of the quarterfinals of the Champions League of the two parties. Villa travels to the Parc des Princes on Wednesday evening for the first stage of the last eight collision.
Unai Emery's side in the last 16 beaten Clubbrugge, while PSG Brest and Liverpool have defeated in the Knockouts to reach this phase. The hosts of Luis Enrique come into play in the game when winning the Ligue 1 title at the weekend.
The structure of Wednesday's competition was marred after the images emerged from the two sets of fans who collide on the street. The images shows bumps, glasses and chairs that are thrown outside of a Parisian bar.
A massive fight seemed to take place with dozens of supporters. Villa had expected a fiery reception from the PSG fans, after keeper Emiliano Martinez wore a hat that seemed to mock the French national team.
In the course of this campaign, the French Ministry of the Interior fought against an escalation in a football fan. In a statement at the end of March, the ministry said: “Since the beginning of the 2024/2025 season, we have witnessed a real explosion of violence during professional football matches.
“No fewer than 64 games are characterized by serious incidents. Since the start of the season, 627 arrests have been made on the sidelines of professional football matches, an increase of 41% compared to last season, when there were a total of 718.
“The Ministry of the Interior is waiting for a return to calmness and an end to violence by the relevant clubs of the supporters. Stadium bans and dissolution will no longer be necessary once public order has been respected and violence has stopped.
“Professional football clubs, football authorities and supporters clubs play a role in calming the situation alongside the public authorities.”
Emery tries to keep his side focusing on the task, where PSG offers a difficult test. He said: “Tomorrow is a challenge, but it is a challenge as before because we want to compete and want to be protagonists on the field.
“It's not an individual challenge with him [Enrique]. I appreciate him a lot, I respect him a lot and I will be grateful to see him. Other coaches can always learn from something he does.
“Tomorrow I will like to play football with two good teams in the Champions League. Hopefully we can watch a very good game with very good players who do our best for Aston Villa.”
In the meantime, Enrique has rejected the 'favorites' tag that has been handed over by his side. The PSG boss said: “As far as I'm concerned, there is no such thing as favorites in football. Everyone told Liverpool that we were less likely.
“There are eight teams that deserve to be in this phase of the competition, eight teams that can qualify for the next phase. Many of the 'favorites' are already eliminated. We will have to do what is needed and earn to win on the field.
“We will continue to see a great version of Paris Saint-Germain, with the same intensity. I am totally convinced of the level that we have reached so far and what awaits us: it is best to come.”
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