Reece James says he hopes the Chelsea fan knocked out by a single punch outside of the London Stadium “is okay” as he expressed his disgust at the violent scenes that marred Saturday afternoon’s Premier League fixture. Footage taken from outside the ground went viral ahead of kick-off as one Blues supporter was knocked unconscious following a punch from one West Ham fan, who has since been arrested following the incident.
Rival supporters were embroiled in a verbal spat before the outbreak of violence that was recorded by multiple fans from varying angles.
One West Ham fan threw a punch that antagonised a group of Chelsea supporters, causing little damage.
But one Chelsea fan then moved forward towards the West Ham supporters before being knocked off his feet by a single blow.
He was later recorded laying flat on the ground as he was placed in the recovery position.
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The Met Police have since confirmed that they have arrest a 22-year-old on suspicion of assault following the altercation.
A statement read: “A 22 year old man was arrested before kick off at the London Stadium today after an alleged assault on another man. The 22-year-old has been taken into custody.”
On the field, the two sides played out a closely-contested 1-1 draw that really could have gone either way.
Chelsea’s new January signing Joao Felix opened the scoring when he converted Enzo Fernandez’s brilliant cross with a confident finish.
But West Ham were not lying down as they issued a quick response courtesy of former Blues left-back Emerson Palmieri.
West Ham thought they won the game in the second half when Tomas Soucek tapped the ball home after Kepa Arrizabalaga stopped Declan Rice’s header from a free-kick.
However, the offside flag came to Chelsea’s rescue before the Blues thought they were about to receive their own chance to nab all three points.
Conor Gallagher’s low drive was virtually saved in the box by Soucek, who dived down and handled the goal-bound shot – only for the VAR officials to miss the incident.
In the end, the two sides had to settle for a share of the points following an entertaining spectacle.
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