Italy and Serbia match abandoned
The European Championship qualifying match between Italy and Serbia was abandoned after trouble occurred with fans.
Fireworks and flares were thrown on to the pitch and the kick-off was delayed for 45 minutes as the police tried to sort out the situation in the Marassi stadium in Genoa.
The game was only seven minutes old when the referee stopped the game as more flairs were thrown on to the pitch.
Serbian fans had clashed with Italian riot police earlier in the day and there seemed to be no chance that the trouble would stop as the day wore on. An incident involving an attack on a police car also took place.
Inside the stadium Serbian fans threw fireworks at Italian fans and three Serbian fans managed to scale a security screen.
The players left the field of play and returned later. A large police presence was situated between Italian and Serbian fans, but this did little to ease the tension about the ground.
The Serbian players urged their fans to calm down and the match was allowed to commence after the national anthems were played.
However, the game only lasted minutes before Scottish referee Craig Thomson was forced to abandon the game after a missile hit the Italian goalkeeper Emiliano Viviano.
UEFA officials and delegates decided it was in the best interest to abandon the game.
The Serbians left the pitch and were followed shortly after by the Italians who were applauded off by their home fans.
Italy still lead the group on goal difference, but because the match was postponed Slovenia have joined Italy on seven points having played one game more.
Northern Ireland missed the chance to join the league leaders, but they could only manage a draw against the Faroe Islands.
FIFA and UEFA have yet to issue a statement regarding penalties or punishments, but it is likely that both the Italian and Serbian football associations will face fines.
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