Anfield icon Steven Gerrard has called for UEFA to be "held accountable" after an independent investigation found the governing body neglected safety and security measures before last season's Champions League final.
French police used tear gas on supporters who had travelled to Paris for the fixture against Real Madrid and those same fans were initially accused by UEFA and French officials of trying to gain access to Stade de France without tickets. A four-month independent review of the distressing scenes released earlier in February absolved fans of any blame, instead placing this firmly on UEFA and French police.
Gerrard was serving as a pundit for the final while his loved ones were caught up in the disarray outside the stadium. The former England captain branded UEFA's behaviour "not good enough" and called for those responsible to face punishment during an passionate message ahead of Tuesday night's first leg against Los Blancos.
Reacting to the independent report, Gerrard said on BT Sport: "I think that news was very welcome in this stadium and amongst every Liverpool fan because it's not good enough. I think the treatment on the night was a disgrace. I think it's the only time as a pundit I've never really enjoyed it. We didn't have no signal inside the ground, no internet connection.
"We were getting the wrong information fed to us and there was a lot of confusion. You have family and friends that are outside the stadium and the treatment was a disgrace, basically. Thankfully, the independent investigations have come clear and there's no blame for Liverpool fans, which is important."
What punishments should be handed out after UEFA's failures last season? Have your say in the comments.
Gerrard continued: "That's what Liverpool fans do, they stick together, they try and help each other and they're there for each other. I think the important thing now as well as moving forward is there needs to be accountability. This investigation's took too long and now that it's clear and the truth's out, someone needs to be held accountable, and we'll see what happens moving forward."
Meanwhile, BT Sport presenter Jake Humphrey apologised on behalf of the broadcaster for relaying the message put out by UEFA at the time of the final which claimed fans were to blame for the chaos outside Stade de France. Gerrard's co-pundit Rio Ferdinand added: " It just screams prejudice and jumping to conclusions before anything's even happened.
"For us to be in the stadium and to feel like - and we're not even in the stands, we're in a protected area - but we still felt quite vulnerable ourselves and we were nowhere near what the fans we feeling. Even walking around the stadium, I was on edge a little bit because of the way that the police were treating people, all the fans in the stadium.
"There needs to be accountability, as Stevie said, and somebody needs to be put to the sword for this. There has to be some people come to the fore and say, 'we got this wrong'. The police are a big part of that."
