French match between fierce rivals St-Etienne and Lyon SUSPENDED after official hit on head by object thrown from crowd
THE fierce derby between Saint-Etienne and Lyon was suspended shortly before half-time after a linesman was struck by an object from the crowd.
Saint-Etienne had led 1-0 courtesy of Lucas Stassin’s goal when the unsavoury incident occurred.
Reports in France suggested that the match official, named Mehdi Rahmouni, was struck by a “coin” thrown from the crowd at Stade Geoffroy-Guichard.
Following the incident in the 44th minute, officials decided to take the players off the pitch.
Crisis meetings followed between match officials, Ligue 1 delegates, police and representatives from both clubs.
It was decided that the match WOULD recommence following a 45-minute delay.
A Ligue 1 official subsequently confirmed the decision – revealing that Rahmouni had taken a painkiller and would be able to continue.
They also pointed out that, should any more projectiles be thrown from the crowd, the game would be abandoned.
As Lyon players re-emerged from the tunnel, they were met by a chorus of boos from the home crowd.
Saint-Etienne is located around 35 miles from Lyon and the two clubs have shared a bitter local rivalry for many years.
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Les Vertes were not in Ligue 1 last season, having dropped into the second tier.
Ahead of the match, home fans mocked their Lyon counterparts by showing off Manchester United shirts, following the Red Devils’ dramatic comeback win over the French side in the Europa League last Thursday.
Tonight’s game took on great importance, with Lyon knowing that they could climb into the top four with a win.
Struggling Saint-Etienne, meanwhile, went into the clash aiming to go level on points with 16th-placed Le Havre as they bid to avoid the drop.
Lyon boss Paulo Fonseca watched the match from the stands.
The 52-year-old is six weeks into a nine-month touchline ban for angrily confronting referee Benoit Millot during his side’s 2-1 win over Brest on March 2.
Following the resumption of the match, Stassin grabbed his second to double Saint-Etienne’s advantage on 67 minutes.
Lyon’s US international midfielder Tanner Tessman pulled on back 14 minutes from time, but Les Vertes held firm to secure a vital 2-1 win.
Saint-Etienne’s match at Montpellier last month was abandoned due to crowd trouble.
Members of the home crowd in the Etang de Thau stand set their stadium on fire by throwing flares after their side went 2-0 down to ten-man Saint-Etienne early in the second half.
Players were subsequently sent back to the dressing rooms, before fans were told to evacuate the stadium around half an hour later.
A meeting between Ligue 1 officials subsequently decided to award Saint-Etienne a 3-0 victory.