Football
PA Sport 9y

Pitch invaders halt Tottenham vs. Partizan Belgrade clash

Tottenham's Europa League tie with Partizan Belgrade was briefly suspended after three separate incidents of pitch-invading.

Players and staff were led off the field in the 41st minute of the Group C clash at White Hart Lane, which kicked off at 8.05 p.m. local time, with the scoreline at 0-0.

UEFA officials spoke to the fourth official after the first two incidents, with a third pitch invader prompting the referee Yevhen Aranovskiy to call the players off.

An announcement over the public address system confirmed play would resume, and it did so at 8.55 p.m.

Two of the pitch invaders appeared to run around the players, taking "selfie" shots on handheld devices with a number of them.

Tottenham striker Roberto Soldado looked to strip one of the invaders of his T-shirt, which like those worn by the other two intruders bore the name of headphone manufacturer BassBuds.

Tottenham's shop stocks an official club range of headphones made by the company.

BassBuds later issued a statement via Facebook that condemned the actions of the pitch invaders.

"We have been made aware of an incident at the Tottenham game tonight," the statement read. "We are appalled that the game was interrupted in this manner. We do not condone the interruption of any sporting fixture in this way."

All three intruders were led away by match stewards and Tottenham have announced on Twitter that they "have been arrested and are assisting police with their enquiries."

Spurs manager Mauricio Pochettino told ITV: "I am very disappointed. I know the club will make a statement to explain the situation but I am personally disappointed."

UEFA imposed a charge on Swiss side Basel on Thursday after an incident in Wednesday's Champions League match against Real Madrid saw two fans, who gave the impression of being more tourists than trouble-causers, ventured on to the St Jakob-Park pitch.

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