West Midlands Police arrested two men after a man was attacked shortly before Coventry City took on Birmingham City at St Andrew’s on Saturday.
Arrests Made as Man Suffers Fractured Skull Before Coventry City v Birmingham City
Police Appeal For Witnesses
The incident came roughly 15 minutes before kick-off in the FA Cup tie at St Andrew’.
It occurred as fans walked on Cattell Road, Small Heath, at around 2.45pm.
A 22-year-old man was knocked to the floor and suffered a fractured skull near to the junction of Tilton Road.
Reports by Coventry Live on Sunday at 10.30am claimed the man was in a stable condition in hospital.
Two men, aged 25 and 45, were arrested on suspicion of assault and later released pending investigation.
West Midlands Police is appealing for witnesses to the assault on Catell Road.
‘It Was Chaos’
In an isolated attack after the match, one spectator described an atmosphere of ‘chaos’ as supporters clashed.
Sky Blues supporter Liam Wozencroft told CoventryLive how he was punched in the side of the head on his travels.
The 39-year-old was reportedly ambushed by a group of around 20 men; the group allegedly had their faces covered by scarves and hoods outside a pub on Rea Street.
Liam said: “It was horrendous. I was walking back up from the ground and a few people were having a bit of banter, there was nothing unusual, and then as I walked up the atmosphere completely changed.
“There was a big group of people outside a pub, they had covered up their faces with only their eyes showing.
‘Out of Nowhere I Got Punched’
“I had headphones in listening to the phone-in on the radio not paying much attention and out of nowhere I got punched to the side to the head.
“It was ‘wallop’ and they were swarming around, shouting. I stumbled to the side a bit, it wasn’t a strong punch, but I was left in shock as I wasn’t expecting it.
“My first thought was to get out of there, it was chaos. I went and told the police further up the street what had happened but they just said to keep moving.
“It felt like a pre-planned ambush. As I walked on more and more police cars and vans were pulling up all the time.”
The lifelong Sky Blues fan also described seeing police officers outside Digbeth Coach Station with their batons drawn.
He said: “I’ve been going to the football for years and years and I have to go back to the nineties to find a time when I’ve experienced anything like this. I won’t be going to the replay and I would advise fans who do to have their wits about them and not to walk to the ground.”
A spokesperson for West Midlands Police said: “At around 5pm, we received reports of minor trouble as fans travelled away through Digbeth. It was dealt with as part of the police operation.”
The replay is scheduled for Tuesday, 4 February.
Birmingham City Arrests Main Photo
