Lothar Matthaus has claimed England fans “deserve the trauma” from their Euro 2020 final defeat to Italy.
England suffered more penalty heartache in the Wembley final, as the Azzurri lifted the European Championship trophy for the second time.
The hosts took the lead through Luke Shaw in the second minute, sparking wild scenes of celebrations among the crowd of more than 60,000.
But Italy struck back through Leonardo Bonucci and overcame their opponents 3-2 on penalties.
The game was played against the backdrop of supporter chaos, with reports that hundreds of fans gained access into the stadium without tickets.
Those disturbances came after the English Football Association were fined for three incidents in the semi victory over Denmark.
UEFA sanctioned the FA for booing during the national anthems, the use of a laser pointer against Kasper Schmeichel and letting a flare off inside the ground.
On the pitch, it’s the fifth time that England have been knocked out of a major tournament on penalties, with their horrendous run starting at the World Cup in Italy back in 1990.
Matthaus played a starring role for West Germany in that tournament, scoring their second spot-kick in the semi-final shootout victory over England.
And speaking on 2021’s failure, the former Ballon d’Or winner blasted England’s fans, suggesting they didn’t deserve to be victorious.
"English fans were hostile to the little girl in the Germany jersey," Matthaus told BILD. "They were whistling the opposing national anthems.
"Denmark's goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel was blinded with a laser during a penalty that Raheem Sterling dived to get in the semi-finals.
"Add to that the racist hostility towards their own players after the final. Dear Englishmen, that was unsportsmanlike behaviour that we did not know from you and never want to see again.
"So, sorry for the players but you deserve the trauma after the final was lost on penalties."
UEFA have since opened disciplinary proceedings into those Wembley security breaches and have hit the FA with four further charges.
The statement confirms the charges relate to “invasion of the field of play by its supporters”, “throwing of objects by its supporters”, “disturbance caused by its supporters during the national anthem “ and the “lighting of a firework by its supporters”.
It was also stated that a UEFA Ethics and Disciplinary Inspector has been appointed to conduct an investigation into events involving supporters which occurred inside and around the stadium.
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