THE MAN in charge of policing at the Champions League final in Paris has apologised for using tear gas against Liverpool fans outside the stadium.
Didier Lallement offered sincere regrets for the trouble and admitted failures in the security operation.
But he also defended his handling of the chaos last month, saying his ‘red line’ was to save lives.
Liverpool fans were tear-gassed and pepper-sprayed before the match and were later targeted by local youths.
“It was obviously a failure, because people were pushed around or attacked even though we owed them security,” Mr. Lallement told the French Senate yesterday.
But he blamed the trouble on thousands of fake tickets and said his force was not prepared for the scale of the problem ahead of the final between Liverpool and Real Madrid on 28 May.
He said using tear gas outside the Stade de France was the only means they had to get the crowd to move back without charging at them.
“I think it would have been a mistake to charge at people,” he said adding that appeals had been made for supporters to move back but those did not work.
The police chief was aware that families were caught up in the chaos but he insisted it was absolutely necessary for the match to get underway because the stadium was full.