Russian ruffians arrested for attacking Spanish tourists in Germany

SPANISH tourists in Germany have become the latest victims of Russian football hooligans, after they beat and kicked a couple and their guide in front of Cologne cathedral, injuring one of them seriously.

The gang of thugs had travelled to the German city from Marseille, where violence erupted between rival supporters on Saturday June 11, and were supposedly headed for Moscow.

German police said the men were heavily intoxicated and behaved in an “extremely aggressive and brutal manner” towards the three Spanish nationals, one of whom remains in hospital following the apparently unprovoked attack.

The bruisers were in possession of tickets for the Russian Euro 2016 matches against Slovakia and England, and had “typical objects used by hooligans including masks and gumshields.”

Officers were able to detain five of the six assailants at the scene, while the other managed to escape but was later apprehended at Cologne-Bonn airport before he was able to board a flight to Ibiza.

German authorities will now contact their French counterparts to determine whether the men were involved in the melees that have plagued the early stages of Euro 2016.

UEFA has already told the Russian Football Union that the country could be kicked out of the tournament if there is any repeat of the free-for-all that broke out in the stadium following their game with England.

Three Russian fans were handed French jail sentences ranging between one and two years on Friday, June 17 for their part in those bust-ups, with the harshest sanctions given to a director for fan relations at Lokomotiv Moscow.

The head of the official Russian supporters group, who was revealed to have far-right affiliations and be travelling with the official delegation, is also among 20 Russian supporters currently being held in a detention centre as they await deportation from France.