Dutch police hold 230 Napoli fans ahead of ‘high risk’ PSV match

Dutch police said Tuesday they had arrested more than 200 fans of Italian club Napoli ahead of a “high-risk” Champions League clash against PSV Eindhoven.

Police said large groups of Italian fans engaged in “provocative behaviour” in the centre of Eindhoven on Monday night, with officers detaining 230 to prevent confrontation with locals.

Authorities questioned the Napoli fans overnight, releasing them with a fine but also banning them from the match and the city centre.

“All arrested supporters with a ticket are not allowed to attend tonight’s match,” said the police in a statement.

The match has been designated a “high-risk” clash, with police enforcing special rules such as preventative frisking.

A source close to the detained Napoli fans, all hardcore “ultras”, told AFP that the supporters were picked up by Dutch police in a car park soon after arriving in Eindhoven.

AFP was told by the source that the fans had caused no trouble in Eindhoven and had not even had time to leave the car park before the police arrived and told them they had violated a city order against large gatherings.

Police said they would be present in large numbers ahead of the 9pm (1900 GMT) kick-off and appealed to fans to behave.

“Let’s work together to ensure that tonight’s game and everything surrounding it proceeds smoothly so everyone can enjoy the football match,” said the statement.

On the pitch, both sides will be looking to get their Champions League campaign on track after a slow start.

Dutch champions PSV lost 3-1 at home to Union Saint-Gilloise from Belgium in their opening fixture before squeezing a 1-1 draw at Bayer Leverkusen.

Napoli lost 2-0 away to Manchester City before a 2-1 home victory against Sporting Lisbon.