Manchester City have condemned the action of some of their supporters after they chanted through a minute's silence for the victims of the Hillsborough disaster at Wembley.
Both teams lined up around the centre circle to pay their respects the day after the 33rd anniversary of the tragedy, that saw 97 Liverpool fans lose their lives at an FA Cup semi-final against Nottingham Forest. But referee Michael Oliver had to cut the silence short after some City fans behind the goal continued to chant through it.
The Liverpool fans at the opposite end of the stadium reacted angrily and Oliver blew his whistle around 20 seconds into the silence. City have since released a statement expressing their disappointment in the supporters who disrupted the silence, while offering their apologies to Liverpool.
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A club statement said: "Manchester City are extremely disappointed with the actions of some City supporters during the minute’s silence before today’s game. The Club sincerely apologises to all those connected with Liverpool Football Club."
Liverpool lead the semi-final 3-0 at half-time thanks to goals from Ibrahima Konate and a Sadio Mane double. Match of the Day presenter Gary Lineker mentioned the incident at half-time of the BBC'S coverage of the game.
He said: "One news item I want to read out before we move on, this match was meant to be preceded by a minute's silence for the 33rd anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster. This was cut short by referee Michael Oliver after persistent chants from the City end, which is obviously disappointing."
