Over the past few weeks, there’s been no shortage of hype—both national and international—about last night’s UEFA Europa League clash between [Aston Villa](https://www.villaparkstadium.com/events/christmas-parties/) and Israel’s Maccabi Tel Aviv.
If you’d listened to the warnings on radio and television, you’d have thought Birmingham was preparing for an invasion rather than a football match. Schools, we were told, might close early. Buses would be diverted. The area around [Villa Park](https://www.villaparkstadium.com/events/christmas-parties/), supposedly, would descend into chaos, with police stretched to breaking point and angry mobs clashing in the streets.
Naturally then, my son and I turned up expecting to step into something resembling a war zone. For weeks, social media had been bubbling with talk of disruption.
Groups claiming solidarity with Gaza and Palestine had announced their plans to stage a large protest outside the stadium.
Local politicians and activists, too, had been outspoken in their criticism of the club for allowing the game to go ahead.
Even some figures within Birmingham City Council had chimed in, as though hosting an Israeli football team was a political act rather than a sporting fixture.