Montpellier's game vs. Saint-Etienne abandoned after crowd trouble

The French Ligue 1 clash between relegation battlers Montpellier and Saint-Etienne on Sunday was abandoned in the second half after flares were thrown by supporters, briefly causing a fire to break out in the stands.

Saint-Etienne were leading home side Montpellier 2-0 when the action was halted in the 57th minute, with a decision taken to abandon the match altogether shortly after.

Referee Francois Letexier confirmed to reporters during a press conference that the game had been abandoned on the order of the authorities after police were forced to intervene to restore calm.

Lucas Stassin had scored twice for Saint-Etienne who were on course to claim a vital win in their fight against relegation despite being reduced to 10 men just before half-time.

Montpellier are bottom of the table, five points adrift of Saint-Etienne, who are themselves a point behind Le Havre in the relegation play-off spot and three points away from outright safety.

The trouble erupted just after Saint-Etienne's second goal went in, while broadcaster DAZN reported that incidents had also taken place outside the stadium.

The hotel where the Saint-Etienne team were staying had also been targeted overnight, with fireworks launched at its facade at around 3:00 am local time, although police said there were no injuries or serious damage caused.