West Ham Stadium Issues Won't Go Away Without Urgent Action

From the beginning of the season It was only to be expected that there would be more than a fair share of media coverage given to any negativity with regards to West Ham United's tenure of the London Stadium, given the jealousy surrounding and muck raking involved in the decision process to appoint Hammers as the anchor tenancy, despite it being the only realistic option to avoid having a 'white elephant' stadium as has happened in other host countries.
There has been a lot of coverage with regards to fans refusing to sit down, a situation that could be easily resolved by having a safe standing area similar to the one that Celtic have, but the real problem is the lack of segregation between the rival fans. Currently there are NO physical barriers to separate fans, only a couple of 'mini' hurdles that a child could jump over (possibly a legacy from the olympic games) On Saturday the 'thin line' of stewards could easily have been overwhelmed had the opposing fans been from a less 'gentile' club, the situation is compounded because the walkways to the opposing sections are like an 'avenue of honour' allowing home/away fans to taunt each other depending on how the matches are panning out, it would only takes one or two 'nutters' to create a dreadful situation by diving into the opposition supporters from above, The current situation is an accident waiting to happen, all those involved need to seek a resolution before something terrible happens, which it will if nothing is done, and pronto! This may seem like dragging up 'old coals' but the importance of a quick resolution cannot be stressed highly enough, the reputation of the club is at a pivotal point with global exposure as never before, it would be ludicrous to blow this once in a life time opportunity by presenting the club as an organisation incapable of maintaining it's own security let alone progressing to the 'higher level' so often talked and dreamed about!
The logical conclusion would be that West Ham step up to the plate and 'offer' to take over security or at least the bulk of it on match days, original Boleyn stewards should be sort out and re-hired (at a premium if necessary) they, with a few 'real' policemen and women along with realistic barriers would be able to keep matters in hand far better than the current situation. In the end it is the only viable option to prevent the inevitable sanctions that will follow any unrest in the Stadium and even worse the possibility of people getting hurt.
Stadium Operators, London Stadium 185 have released a statement following events on Saturday:
“London Stadium have identified a number of supporters involved in incidents of disorder during Saturday’s Premier League match between West Ham United and Watford. Our stewards and response teams were called to address isolated instances of violent confrontation which resulted in ten supporters being ejected from the stadium and three handed to police.
“In line with our safety and security policies, these supporters will be banned from all stadium events. In addition, we will continue to review CCTV footage and take retrospective action where necessary. Any evidence of crime and disorder will be passed to the police.We remain determined to ensure that all supporters can enjoy the best possible matchday experience in a safe and secure environment. We will continue to work closely with West Ham United to identify and take action against the small number of supporters found to be responsible for these incidents.”
It's a start, but the stadium operators need to be pro-active instead of reactive if similar situations are to be avoided - Ed