Polish PM calls for ‘urgent diplomatic action’ after arrest of two footballers in Netherlands

Poland’s Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki called for “urgent diplomatic action” on Friday after Dutch police arrested two Legia Warsaw players following a Europa Conference League match.

The two players — named in multiple media reports as Radovan Pankov and Josue Pesqueira — were arrested on Thursday after an away match against AZ Alkmaar. According to statements by police and the city of Alkmaar, the two were detained for allegedly assaulting AZ employees “to such an extent that medical care was needed.”

“The decision of the Public Prosecution Service to arrest the players was not taken lightly, and was discussed in advance with the police,” said chief prosecutor Digna van Boetzelaer in the statement. “These are suspects of serious criminal offenses, which the Public Prosecution Service … will carefully assess.”

Following news of the arrests, Morawiecki called for Poland’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs to take action to “verify the events of the night.”

“Polish players and fans must be treated in accordance with the law,” Morawiecki said on X, previously Twitter. “There is no consent to break it.”

Legia’s president Dariusz Mioduski said during a press conference that what happened was “an absolute scandal” and that they are “making up a story that’s not true.”

“I haven’t seen any aggression from the players towards the police,” he said. “We’ll see what the reports will show, but I’ve seen it all and I don’t really believe in it.”

Dutch authorities said Legia’s fans turned violent on the day of the match, which ended 1-0 in favor of the Dutch team, with multiple staffers injured as a result. Police used tear gas to “protect their own safety,” but in the course of the afternoon tensions escalated to the point that the mayor designated the area around Alkmaar’s station and the stadium to be a “safety risk.” 

“The Polish media paints the picture that players were victims of the [police’s] actions, but this is by no means the case,” the statement said. “It was the players who used violence.”