Champions League final: The chief of police in Paris apologises for tear gassing Liverpool fans.

The police chief in charge of the Champions League final in Paris has apologized for deploying tear gas on Liverpool fans outside the stadium.

Didier Lallement expressed heartfelt contrition for the incident and recognized that the security operation had failed.

He did, however, justify his handling of the mayhem last month, claiming that his "red line" was to preserve lives.

Before the game, Liverpool fans were tear-gassed and pepper-sprayed, while local youngsters later targeted them.

"It was certainly a failure," Mr. Lallement told the French Senate on Thursday, "since people were pushed around or attacked even though we owed them security."

However, he blamed the snafu on thousands of bogus tickets, claiming that his team was unprepared for the magnitude of the problem ahead of the final between Liverpool and Real Madrid on May 28.

He claimed that firing tear gas outside the Stade de France was the only way to convince the crowd to back off without charging at them: "I think charging at people would have been a mistake." He went on to say that while there had been requests for supporters to return, they had failed.

Although the police chief was aware that families were caught up in the pandemonium, he insisted that the game must go on because the stadium was completely packed.

The incident outside the stadium sparked outrage in France, the United Kingdom, and Spain.

Gérald Darmanin, the Interior Minister, has come under fire for his response, blaming the unrest outside the stadium on "huge, industrial-scale" ticket theft that created a stampede of Liverpool fans.

Mr.Lallement claimed that the magnitude of bogus tickets had not been taken into account before the match. When asked why he estimated the number of bogus tickets at 30-40,000, the police chief confessed that he could have been wrong, but that was his best guess at the time.

Despite arriving hours earlier, Liverpool fans have expressed concern regarding their safety in the crowd.

Local gangs from the Saint-Denis region, however, have been reported as swooping on people after the match, taking phones and watches, and threatening them with knives.

Liverpool Mayor Steve Rotheram, whose phone was stolen outside the stadium, will testify to the Senate later on Thursday about the turmoil. The French Football Federation will also be heard at the hearing.

Last Monday, Uefa apologized to both clubs' fans for the "terrifying and distressing acts" they had witnessed. "No football fan should be put in that predicament, and it must never happen again," declared the European Football Association in a statement.