Jos fans attack, injure Enyimba players after NPFL draw against Plateau United

UNRULY fans broke Covid-19 protocol on Sunday to invade the pitch and attack players and officials of Enyimba during their Nigeria Professional Football League fixture against Plateau United in Jos.

Some of the players sustained visible injuries in the aftermath of the attack which occurred after the fans forced their way into the ground.

Enyimba held hosts Plateau United to a 0-0 draw but the Aba side paid a heavy price with some of their players hit on the head by objects hauled at them by the irate mob.

Eye witnesses at the stadium said the fans were unhappy because they were denied entrance into the stadium according to Covid-19 protocols which stipulate that all matches must be played behind closed doors, with only match officials and accredited journalists allowed in.

The adamant fans eventually found their way into the stadium and accused the match commissioner of plotting to cheat the home team, saying that was why he insisted that no spectators should be admitted.

The ignorantly disgruntled fans then launched an attack on the match officials and Enyimba players, inflicting serious injuries on several of them, including goalkeeper Sabirou Bassa-Djeri and defender Danladi Timothy.

By Sunday night, the players had received emergency treatment and no lives were lost.

The Jos attack is the third unsavoury incident in Nigerian football in recent weeks after Kano Pillars fans invaded the pitch in their temporary home ground of Kaduna during the NPFL match against Akwa United, and Remo Stars fans injured several Bendel Insurance players in the course of a Nigeria National League fixture.

The Nigeria Football Federation has sanctioned both Pillars and Remo Stars but this has apparently not deterred Plateau United fans from following in the ugly steps.