By Danny Mills

10th Jun, 2022 | 10:42am

Danny Mills responds to latest twist in Liverpool controversy

Danny Mills has suggested the behaviour of English football fans towards the end of the 2021-22 season is partly to blame for the treatment of Liverpool fans ahead of the Champions League final.

Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, the ex-Man City and England defender claimed the way the Everton fan treated Patrick Vieira helped ensure the reputation of English fans preceded Liverpool in Paris.

Vieria had an altercation with an Everton fan on the Goodison Park pitch after a pitch invasion following Crystal Palace’s 3-2 defeat to the Blues (19 May).

Liverpool’s 1-0 loss to Real Madrid in last month’s Champions League final (28 May) was delayed by over half an hour due to issues around the Stade de France.

The Independent reported on Thursday (9 June) that the Paris police have apologised to Liverpool fans for using teargas on them.

“It’s always very, very difficult,” Mills told Football Insider correspondent Connor Whitley.

“People say English fans are judged unfairly and it’s premeditated. I don’t think we are, in all honesty.

“You have to go through the past 20, 30 years and look at how our fans have behaved when travelling abroad in this country.

“Let’s remember just before the end of the season there were fans on the pitch and a french hero, legend, God in Patrick Vieira was abused and almost attacked by fans.

“This is a guy who is so well regarded in France for what he’s achieved in football it’s unbelievable. 

“You don’t think the French police looked at that and thought ‘Look what the English are doing to one of our heroes’? Can you imagine if Frank Lampard or Stevie Gerrard was managing PSG and that happened then a French team was coming over to England and how the media would perceive that saying ‘Look at the hooliganism, the disgraceful scenes’.

“Then we wonder why we are treated differently. Plus we have had issues with people running on the pitch and players getting headbutted in the last little bit of time.

“Because of the past we are going to be treated differently and we do have a poor reputation for travelling fans.

“Yes, Uefa were at fault, the police were possibly at fault but also our reputation goes before us.

“What happened to certain people was completely wrong and Uefa and the police were at fault. But we have to realise when we go abroad we have a reputation and it’s not great.

“It’s not all fans. It’s a small section of fans but we do have a history or reputation for causing problems.”

In other news, a finance guru has revealed Liverpool stand to benefit from a ‘£400million-plus’ deal.