Bruges police: 57 Manchester United supporters arrested in Belgium

Wednesday was a busy day for Belgian police.

Dirk van Nuffel, the chief constable of Bruges police, said that 57 Manchester United supporters were arrested in Belgium due to violence stemming from the second leg of the club's Champions League play-off at Club Brugge.

"There were a lot of fans without a ticket and they were attacked by 30 hooligans from Bruges," van Nuffel said. "Police forces were present quickly and made 32 arrests of Englishmen and six Belgians.

"They were all registered and then released. We have the identities of all the people involved. We will pass those identities to the British police and they will decide whether to charge them."

Van Nuffel claims the 30-odd Belgian assailants attacked United supporters in a pub known as Charlie Rockets. The fight spilled out on to the street, where missiles were thrown.

The other arrests came near the Jan Breydel Stadium and involved supporters who had shown up without a ticket for the match.

United defeated Brugge 7-1 on aggregate to book its place in the group stage of the Champions League following a one-year absence.