An ugly scene played out on Sunday when a Nasarawa United fan stabbed Plateau United forward Vincent Temitope in the neck in Lafia, Nasarawa State. The match was a fierce battle and the home fans could be seen and heard booing and threatening attack.
As the final whistle went off, Nasarawa supporters stormed the pitch overpowering the police. Vincent became a target for attack because of his spectacular performance even though they lost 3-2 to Nasarawa United.
The Plateau United striker netted a goal and subsequently earned a penalty which he could not convert to a goal but that did not placate the fiery fury of home crowd considering his profound impact on the match.
The victim was swiftly extracted to the Federal Teaching Hospital in Lafia for treatment. According to Plateau United’s Director of Media Operations, Yaksat Maklek, ‘Vincent is fine now and in stable condition’.
The pitch invasion and attack have been blamed on inadequate security which compromised the safety of the players and officials. Sources indicate that the total number of policemen deployed to the stadium to ensure security was not more than 20. Outnumbered by the crowd, the inadequacy left the away team exposed to danger.
Violence in Nigerian Football stadiums has continuously left much to be desired. The same club was previously punished for similar acts of violence by NPFL forbidding fans from entering the stadium. The ban was lifted recently with the expectation of improvement in security and fan conduct.
Subsequent to the attack, the Nigeria Police Force has confirmed the arrest of the culprit whose name has been withheld. The attacker is kept in police custody for further investigation.
