During VfL Bochum’s 3-2 defeat to VfB Stuttgart, Manuel Riemann got into an altercation with a fan. This is how the club reacts.

This scene in the Ruhrstadion made big waves on Sunday evening. After the 2:3 defeat of VfL Bochum in the basement duel against VfB Stuttgart, goalkeeper Manuel Riemann got into an argument with a fan of his own club.

Late in the evening, VfL spoke out and responded to the incident with a statement. “If we want to survive in the relegation battle, we can only do it together,” it said. “This also includes taking decisive and immediate action when individuals from the large blue-and-white supporters cross the clearly drawn lines.”

Riemann had apparently been insulted so violently from a group of fans that he allowed himself to be provoked on his way into the players’ tunnel. He made his way to the seats above the coaches’ benches and engaged in a head-to-head with a supporter. Security guards and teammates intervened and prevented further escalation.

Riemann, who did not look good when he conceded the goal to make it 1:3 at the interval, was “already massively insulted by these spectators in an intolerable manner during the game and especially after the final whistle,” according to the Bochum team.

What consequences the incident will have for the individuals involved is not yet known. “The provocateurs have been isolated and identified. A detailed evaluation of the incident is already underway.”

At the same time, the Revierklub referred to values that are anchored in the club’s mission statement: “These include treating each other with respect and standing by each other in good times and bad. Tolerance and fair play are essential elements of our blue and white togetherness.”

He added that it would only be possible to achieve class preservation if the Bochum community stuck together. “If individuals try to harm VfL, we will take decisive action against them and protect those who are supposed to realize class preservation on the pitch, namely our players. “