'Our supporters should stay at home' - Besiktas boss Bilic prepared for more fan trouble in Belgrade


All eyes will be on the behaviour of Partizan fans on Thursday after a series of despicable incidents at their stadium in recent weeks

By Peter McVitie

On any given matchday, particularly a European one, the atmosphere at Partizan Stadium – home to Partizan Belgrade - will be incredibly hostile and intimidating.

The last two high profile matches which have taken place at the venue have seen the stadium thrust into the limelight for all the wrong reasons.

Partizan were fined €40,000 after their fans made anti-Semitic chants and unfurled racist banners during their opening Europa League clash this season against Tottenham Hotspur. As a result, they have been ordered to play Thursday’s clash against Besiktas with part of the ground closed off.

More recently, though, the stadium became the scene of a massive brawl between Serbia and Albania players during their Euro 2016 qualifying match after a drone carrying the away side’s flag flew over the ground.

Things escalated out of control as the home team’s fans invaded the pitch and attacked Albania players on their way to the tunnel, leaving them to "fear for their lives". It was a black night, the consequences of which are still being felt.

Just a few days later, Partizan faced Red Star in the Belgrade derby, and the match was interrupted twice because of fireworks, flares and the burning of Albanian flags by fans.

With tensions high across the former Yugoslavian nations, the appearance of former Croatia star and current Besiktas boss Slaven Bilic in the intense Serbian stadium this Thursday is probably the last thing anyone needed.

Besiktas take on Partizan in their Europa League Group C clash and the 46-year-old is already prepared for the reception.

“Waiting for us there is a very tense atmosphere,” he told reporters.

“Partizan are a good team. A difficult match awaits us. They have a lot of fans and, I should mention in quotation marks, a 'hostile' crowd.”

So hostile that on Wednesday, Bilic advised Besiktas fans not to travel to Belgrade - although around a thousand are expected to still make the trip.

"It will be very tense, our supporters shouldn't even come to the stadium," he was quoted as saying by Kurir.

With around 2,000 stewards and police to be dispatched to the game to contain the crowd, the meeting between the two teams has been declared a high risk one. Bilic can expect a torrent of abuse and perhaps even missiles to be hurled in his direction.

For decades, the relationship between Serbia and Croatia has been a very strained one - dating back to World War II and exploding during the Yugoslav Wars in the 1990s.
This relationship has improved immensely since then, but there remains a large footballing rivalry.

Bilic was a member of the Croatia golden generation in the 1990s who reached the quarter-finals of Euro '96 and achieved third place at the 1998 World Cup. Croatia massively outperformed Serbia (then still known as Yugoslavia) on the pitch during that time.

After retiring as a player, Bilic soon became a successful coach and his time as boss of his national team from 2006 until 2012 again coincided with a period where Serbia were second best to Croatia.

Bilic’s presence in the stadium could see things quickly get out of hand without proper security, particularly given the passion he exhibits on the touchline.

After a series of terribly violent, racist and disgraceful incidents, all eyes will be on the Partizan Stadium once again. With punishments having already been handed to the club and heavy fines expected for Serbia's Football Association for the debacle against Albania, Uefa, in particular, will be watching Thursday’s game closely.