Pity of some the ignorant bastards that have commented on the analysis of the Roma incident don't bother educating themselves on this.
It's amazing how the antics of those lovable Ingurland fans are airbrushed out of the mass conciousness when it comes to incidents like this. No, any violence against us is down to those horrible scousers past misdemeanors that have given England such a bad name.
Have a look at the arrests and offences. 9 in total, 5 Italian, 4 English. Of the English 2 are scouse. The offences? D&D and Class A's
Yes, English fans being seen as a prized scalp by these loons had its roots in the reputation of England fans and certain English hooligan groups attached to a few English clubs. Liverpool have never really had an organised hooligan group, but we all know which clubs have. They've wrote enough books highlighting their antics at home and abroad with their clubs and England. Morons following England around caused mayhem across Europe virtually unopposed for a long, long time.
This had two main affects, in my opinion. One was the utter hatred of English fans by so many on the continent. The other was that it inspired some others to form their own organised hooligan groups to emulate and now surpass what the English were doing. It's well known that English thugs were a big inspiration for emerging hooligan groups in Europe and were seen, for a time, as top dogs at it. This is why English scalps are prized pretty much above all else. They think they are taking on 'the best' when they confront the English.
Thing is, life's moved on. It's not the 80s anymore and football has seen far too much tragedy. But make no mistake. Ordinary football fans out to have a beer, a good laugh then watch their team are being targeted today due to the legacy of the hooligan culture that was rife in this country decades ago, particularly by those idiots who trashed Europe whilst following the national side. The deep mistrust and dislike of English football fans stems mostly in what's happened with the national side rather than anything else.
Too few people want to acknowledge the bigger picture on this, and would rather pick out a narrative that suits their own agenda and prejudice. It's not specifically Liverpool scalps being seen as a prize the other night, It's English scalps. It's the English reputation they are trying to take on, not particularly Liverpool's. The sad thing is that ordinary fans going about their business will continue to be attacked by these lunatics on the back of a dreadful reputation built up over a long time by fans of many clubs when following the national side. If any confirmation of this was necessary, just ask Russian ultras/hooligans who they most want to meet in the world cup.
