Serbia awarded win but no points

Following a brawl between the players after a remarkable flag stunt, Serbia have been awarded a 3-0 walkover victory against Albania for last week's Euro 2016 qualifier, said the Serbian FA on Friday. They also confirmed that Serbia would be deducted three points.

Shortly afterwards, UEFA's disciplinary committee released a similar statement, making Serbia winners, but deducting them three points. On top of that, UEFA have also ordered Serbia to play their next two home games behind closed doors.

Both teams have been fined 100,000 euros following the chaotic scenes at the match in Belgrade.

Straight after the decision was made, Albania's football federation released a statement saying they will appeal UEFA's decision.

"The UEFA commission's decision does not give justice," said Albania coach Gianni De Biazi. "The three points belong to Albania and they've taken away from us what we've deserved."

Disbelieving scenes in Tirana

The match in Belgrade was halted on October 14 after home fans invaded the pitch and attacked Albania players when a flag depicting so-called Greater Albania, an area covering all parts of the Balkans where ethnic Albanians live, was carried over the stadium by a drone.

Serbian player Stefan Mitrovic eventually grabbed the flag at the Partizan stadium, prompting an angry reaction from Albanian players.

A brawl between rival players broke out after several Albanian players snatched the flag from Mitrovic and then had to run for cover into the tunnel as the invading home fans attacked them while those on the terraces hurled flares. Riot police moved in when around a dozen fans invaded the pitch and attacked the Albanian players, forcing them to retreat into the tunnel as flares were thrown from the terraces.

The game was held against a backdrop of long-running Serb-Albanian tensions over Kosovo, a majority-Albanian former Serbian province that declared independence in 2008.

NATO waged a 78-day air war in 1999 to halt the killing and expulsion of ethnic Albanians in Kosovo by Serbian forces fighting a two-year counter-insurgency war. Serbia does not recognize Kosovo as independent.

The incident led to a diplomatic row between the countries and the prime ministers of Serbia and Albania agreed to postpone a meeting scheduled for Wednesday.

Albania's Premier Edi Rama had been due to visit Belgrade on Oct. 22 -- the first such trip by an Albanian leader in 68 years that was widely seen as a chance to reset ties after a long history of tensions between the Balkan nations. He will now make the journey on Nov. 10 to allow tempers to cool.

Serbian officials have accused Rama's brother, Olsi Rama, of sparking the chaos by releasing a small drone trailing a nationalist Albanian flag over the match venue. He has denied the accusation.

jh/gb (AFP/Reuters)