Liverpool fans stabbed

Italian police confirmed that gangs of Napoli's hardcore Ultra fans had gone out hunting Liverpool supporters to attack in the city on Wednesday night.

Merseyside police said that a total of six fans were assaulted in clashes ahead of the match in Naples, with two men aged 27 and 52 taken to hospital with non-life-threatening stab wounds. Four members of a British family were also attacked, according to another report.

Three arrests were made after the attacks and police recovered an array of weapons and Ultra paraphernalia from the home of one.

Among the weapons seized were a baseball bat, several five-foot long aluminium bars with numerous strategically-placed screws protruding and a six-foot wooden plank.

"Ultras went out seeking English fans, absolutely," said Filippo Bonfiglio, head of DIGOS, the local department which deals with terrorism and political activity.

"There are groups of violent supporters here in Naples so we could hypothesise something like this would happen but it was impossible to prevent every attack everywhere."

One of the Liverpool fans was attacked in an incident where a gang of youths armed with knives and bats approached the English supporters.

English tourists mistaken for Liverpool fans were also accosted by locals at a restaurant with reports saying stones were thrown.

A spokesman for the British consulate in Naples said: "We have had reports of various incidents across the city and three people have been stabbed.

"Two Liverpool supporters suffered knife wounds and will be kept in hospital for a few days and probably miss the match.

"Another supporter was also stabbed but he discharged himself because he wanted to go to the match.

"Three other fans suffered minor injuries after being assaulted and we are working with police to keep an eye on things."

Italian police will be on high alert at Napoli's San Paolo stadium later. Youths damaged the goals and the pitch when breaking into the ground over the weekend.