Westminster Conservative MP Mark Field, who is also the vice-chairman of the all-party parliamentary football group, has claimed that West Ham should play their games behind closed doors if there are repeats of the recent crowd trouble at the London Stadium, the Evening Standard reports.
Within the next 14 days, the board of West Ham United FC should present a detailed plan to the FA and Premier League outlining what they are going to do about security. None of these problems were unforeseeable given the nature of the stadium and difficulties with policing large footballing crowds.
Fights broke out between both sets of West Ham and Chelsea fans as The Hammers defeated their counterparts 2-1 in the fourth round of the EFL Cup to progress into the quarter finals.
The report states that a total of seven fans have been arrested as a result of participation in the brawls last night at the London Stadium, whilst 30 others were given dispersal orders.
There have been some clear failings and they now need to move with urgency to deliver a plan about segregation and broader public order issues.
Fighting between both sets of fans broke loose on Wednesday night despite efforts to prevent such violence happening, with added security forces and segregation introduced especially for the clash against Chelsea.
If there is a repeat of the violence, the next two or three home games for West Ham should be played behind closed doors.
Whatever verdict is reached regarding the future of the London Stadium and the atmosphere in which games are played in there, a solution has to be met soon or MPs could pressure the FA into banning fans from the stadium.
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