Premier League side West Ham United Vice-Chair Karren Brady has "defended the London Stadium's suitability as a football venue, claiming the trouble that has taken place there this season is down to 'teething problems,'" according to the PA. Brady, the stadium operators and the Metropolitan police faced "a two-hour grilling" from the London Assembly Police & Crime Committee on Thursday morning following the crowd trouble at the ground this season. West Ham's move from Upton Park to the former Olympic Stadium has been "marred by violence in the stands." Metropolitan Police Commander BJ Harrington revealed "there were six arrests at the Chelsea match and 18 in total at the stadium this season -- nine of whom were West Ham supporters." Brady said, "We are coming up to the halfway point of season and there have been 18 arrests at matches. At Arsenal last season there were 60, and at Manchester United there were 57. At an Aston Villa match recently there were 14 arrests. We have had teething problems and accept that any disorder is disruptive, but we want to put some sort of perspective on it. We have taken strong and decisive action and we are adamant that we want to eradicate the problems." Some have blamed the trouble on the "large concourses in the stadium while the large open spaces of the Olympic Park make segregation of fans difficult." But Brady added, "The stadium itself is a designated UEFA category four stadium, the highest possible status a stadium can be granted. It can host a Champions League final, so it is absolutely suitable for football." Harrington also insisted the levels of disorder are "not out of the ordinary when compared with other clubs" (PA, 12/1).
