England fans urged to visit war site

BRITAIN’S top football police officer has told The Mail on Sunday that England fans risk serious physical assault if they insult the patriotic Russians this summer — but can head off conflict by paying respects at one of the nation’s most revered World War II sites.

Deputy Chief Constable Mark Roberts is concerned that repeated pleas for better behaviour are not being heeded, with 35 England fans under investigation after ‘appalling’ drunken behaviour when the national team played Holland in Amsterdam in March. All may get banning orders.

‘We know that there are many people associated with football in Russia who can behave in a very serious manner if provoked,’ said Roberts. ‘Our message is: “Be respectful”. We know places where English fans have gone to lay wreaths and this summer can bust myths about what English fans represent.’

British officers have spent two years building up relationships with Russian counterparts and believe many in the host nation have a fascination with English football. Officers say that wreath-laying at Volgograd — formerly Stalingrad — could be hugely well received before England’s opening game there against Tunisia on June 18.

The Soviet defence of Stalingrad is considered the greatest battle of what Russians call the ‘Great Patriotic War’ — stopping the German advance and marking the turning of the tide of war in favour of the Allies. The victory is marked by an eternal flame and ‘The Motherland Calls’ — the iconic statue overlooking the city and in walking distance from the Volgograd Arena.

Volgograd is a former Soviet ‘closed city’ — inaccessible to outsiders for reasons of military or industrial secrecy.

Kevin Miles, chief executive of the Football Supporters Association, said that there was a curiosity about fans from England and other nations visiting. He said: ‘It feels like the curiosity we experienced in Japan 2002, where the locals were excited about visitors.’