Montenegrin fans 'hypocrites and barbarians' - Montenegro chief

The Group G match ended midway through the second half after two outbursts of violence, the first 25 seconds after kick-off when a home fan hit Russia keeper Igor Akinfeev with a flare in the head.

The match resumed after a 33-minute delay but following fighting between rival fans during halftime and a further 18-minute delay for the second half to begin, more trouble erupted.

German referee Deniz Aytekin called the game off in the 67th minute after Russian midfielder Dmitri Kombarov was hit by a missile from the terraces following a scuffle between players on the touchline.

"These fans sing 'Montenegro we love you' but throw flares, insult rivals and cause all sorts of incidents every time they turn up and that's outright hypocrisy," general secretary Momir Djurdjevac told reporters after the ugly scenes in the stadium.

"We have left the impression of barbarians and this is a complete disaster. It seems we don't deserve to have a nation, a soccer team or a berth in a major tournament.

"As far as I am concerned the game should not have continued after the first-minute incident. We can only thank God that no one was seriously hurt."

Akinfeev was taken to hospital with concussion and neck burns, undergoing a brain scan and a number of other tests.

Montenegrin media also reported a charged atmosphere in Podgorica several hours before kick-off with riot police deployed in numbers to separate rival fans

Meanwhile, the Russian Football Union has launched a protest against the decision by UEFA officials to continue the game.

"It is such a shame that the actions of the Montenegro supporters spoilt what would have been a very interesting game," Nikolay Tolstykh, the president of the Russian Football Union, told the Sport Express newspaper.

"Following the end of the match, the Russian Football Union launched a protest. In our view the game should have been stopped in the first minute. The protest has been made. Today we will let UEFA know of our position.

"During the timeframe that they have, UEFA will look at our protest and I am sure they will come up with a objective and fair decision, that is according to the regulations within their documents."

UEFA said it would wait to receive reports from the match delegate and referee before opening disciplinary proceedings but Russian coach Fabio Capello also felt that the match should have been stopped after the Akinfeev incident.

"In my opinion, they needed to stop the game immediately," Capello said in his press conference. "We did what the match delegate told us and went out on to the pitch and played. We could not simply refuse and walk away."

"The supporters were warned that if they threw anything else from the stands again, then the match would be stopped. This is exactly what happened," Russian defender Vasili Berezutski told the Russia 2 television channel.

"I think a lighter hit Dmitry Kombarov. Therefore the referee led the players off the pitch and to the dressing rooms."

Eduard Bezuglov, the doctor of the Russian team, said the goalkeeper has suffered concussion and a burn on his neck.

"Akinfeev has a head concussion and a burnt neck after he was hit by a flare," he was quoted as saying by the Russian Football Union website (www.rfs.ru).

"He underwent an observation in a local clinic. He had a brain scan as well as a number of other tests. His life is not in danger.

"Akinfeev went back with his teammates to Moscow and he will continue his rehabilitation there."