The chauvinistic poster of Poznan's "Lech" fans can greatly upset.
"Lithuanian scums, kneel before Polish lords” - this text is written on the huge poster that was raised during the Europa League third qualifying round match against Vilnius "Žalgiris". Nevertheless, it did not knock the Žalgiris team down: the Lithuanian vice-champions unexpectedly made it to the next round, even after losing 1-2.
The mayor of the Voivodeship Piotr Florka called for an extraordinary city council meeting on Friday, followed by a press conference where he will express his views on this incident. The politician admitted considering very radical punishments, such as closing the stadium or at least the offending stand for several matches.
UEFA can also apply sanctions to the "Lech" team. "I didn't see the match, so it's difficult for me to comment, but such a gesture is insulting and chauvinistic. Everything will depend on how the situation is described in the protocol of the UEFA delegate. UEFA will decide whether to punish "Lech"," said Jakub Kwiatkowski, a representative of the Polish Football Association.
In the Polish media, the chauvinistic gesture of the fans was negatively evaluated. One of the Poznań newspapers noted that it was only the actions of a small group of hooligans, far from reflecting the attitude of the residents towards Lithuania.