GMP respond to Mourinho blaming the police for the late Champions League kick-off
Jose Mourinho blamed a lack of police escort from the Lowry to Old Trafford for kicking off five minutes late against Valencia on Tuesday night.
This was the Police response.
Chief Inspector Andy Sutcliffe, GMP’s Silver Commander for the Manchester United v Valencia fixture, said: “All police deployments are carried out following a comprehensive risk assessment process and specifically in respect of escort team buses, are only ever undertaken on occasions when there is intelligence or information to suggest a risk of threat or harm to the players.
“GMP has previously used police vehicles to accompany a team’s coach but after a review of our core policing responsibilities it was decided that we would no longer provide this service at every fixture.
“We consulted with the relevant football clubs over a period of months to allow them adequate time to plan ahead for their journeys to the stadium.
“Every fixture is assessed individually and we will continue to work with all clubs to provide an appropriate policing response.