Luciano Valente reveals reason for disgraceful fireworks act by Feyenoord fans

Luciano Valente reacted after Feyenoord's 5-2 victory over SC Cambuur to the fireworks incident in the away end. Speaking to ESPN, the Rotterdam side's captain condemned the incident and revealed the possible reason for the travelling supporters' actions.

The match was halted temporarily after 12 minutes when a large amount of fireworks was suddenly set off from the Feyenoord end. Some of it landed on the pitch and among Cambuur supporters, injuring five people, while a firework rocket also flew inches past Feyenoord goalkeeper Tjark Ernst.

"First of all, I was scared stiff," Valente said afterwards about the moment the fireworks were set off. "You suddenly hear fireworks and at first I thought it would just stay in the stand. That happens more often, but suddenly I saw it next to our goalkeeper and eventually also going towards the Cambuur end."

For Valente, scenes like that do not belong in a football stadium. "That has no place in football, I think. I think a lot of people will agree with that. It seems clear to me that I do not support this and we as a team do not either."

He then explained what he had heard about the reason behind the fireworks display. "I think it was intended to support someone. I thought someone had died, something along those lines, but I'm not sure. I think that's what I heard."

While Valente said he can understand the idea behind the show of support, he was emphatic that he could not accept the way it was carried out. "I think it's nice that they want to support someone, only it doesn't have to be done this way. There are many other ways to do it, for example with a nice banner. This is not necessary at all."

Valente also pointed out that the behaviour could have consequences for other Feyenoord supporters who had nothing to do with the incident. The midfielder made clear the team do not need this kind of support: "That Feyenoord would need this, it simply isn't necessary."

On the pitch, Feyenoord also struggled in the opening stages against Cambuur. Valente said coach Giovanni van Bronckhorst used the stoppage caused by the fireworks incident to sharpen up his side. "We said to each other that we could not let it happen that Cambuur kept getting into our half. The coach sharpened us up a bit then."

As for Van Bronckhorst, Valente said he did not need to shout to get that message across. "I wouldn't call it aggressive, but the coach is very clear. That really gets through to us." After the restart, Feyenoord restored order and eventually pulled away to a 5-2 victory.