Serbia Player Forced to Pull Out of Match After Threat From ‘Ivan the Terrible’
A Serbian professional footballer was forced to pull out of a match after receiving a chilling threat from a notorious football hooligan.
England take on Serbia in a World Cup qualifier at Wembley on Thursday night, with away fans effectively banned by their own FA due to concerns over their behaviour.
The Serbian FA refused to sell tickets to their own supporters after trouble in the reverse fixture in Belgrade, where laser pens were flashed in players' eyes and fans clashed with police during the 5-0 win for England.
It is not the only time there's been an issue with supporters in a fixture involving Serbia and England.
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During Euro 2024, the group stage clash between the two teams was deemed to be a “high-risk” tie by UEFA.
The main concern involved a group of up to 500 Serbian hooligans that were rumoured to be attending, including one notorious thug known by his nicknames 'Ivan the Terrible' and 'The Beast of Genoa'.
Ivan Bogdanov, the man behind the nicknames, had been previously been linked to far-right paramilitary groups and was previously jailed for starting a riot during a Euro 2012 qualifier.
And in one incident, he even confronted a Serbian footballer and forced him to pull out of his upcoming match.
Back in 2010, Bogdanov - wearing a balaclava and holding wire cutters and a flare - led a group of hooligans intimidating their Italian hosts ahead of their Euro qualifying match at the Genoa Stadio Comunale Luigi Ferraris stadium.
According to a report from The Guardian, Bogdanov “kept urging other fans to take part in the violent act” and “did not seem to fear the police or care for the consequences”.
In the legal case following the events, it was revealed that Bogdanov and other hooligans had arrived in Genoa three days before the match and even attacked the Serbian team bus on matchday.
During the attack Bogdanov, and others, got inside the bus and reportedly “confronted the goalkeeper Vladimir Stojkovic”, following his controversial move from the hooligan's local team Red Star Belgrade to their fierce rival Partizan.
Stojkovic later refused to play in the match due to “receiving threats from fans” both on the bus and earlier outside the team hotel.
The match was later delayed by 40 minutes due to clashes between fans and police that reportedly led to 17 confirmed arrests, 16 of which were Serbian supporters.
Eventually, the game was abandoned after just six minutes after to Serbian hooligans threw flares and fireworks onto the pitch.
Speaking after the game, Italy manager Cesare Prandelli fumed against the cancellation, saying: “We are extremely sad and very bitter, I’ve never experienced anything like this. The [Serbian] players have been assaulted by their own fans in their bus.
“Their goalkeeper [Vladimir Stojkovic] was in our changing room, he was trembling and had fear not only about tonight but also in view of returning home.
“The ultra fans seemed organised, it appeared as though they would have done everything possible to make sure the game was not played.”
Ben McCrum