Police detain 21 Croatia and England fans after skirmish

ZAGREB, Oct 11 (Reuters) Croatian police detained 21 fans after overnight skirmishes in Zagreb city centre ahead of today's Euro 2008 qualifier between Croatia and England.

''A total of 21 fans, 16 Croatian and five English, were detained after the clashes,'' police said in a statement.

''Police prevented serious fighting after moving in swiftly to separate the rival fans and closed down the area,'' it said.

Fighting broke out in a central Zagreb street packed with bars and a nearby restaurant where most England fans gathered last evening.

Daily newspaper Sportske Novosti said Croatian fans threw bottles and a fire extinguisher at the England supporters, who responded by hurling chairs at them.

There were no signs of trouble on Wednesday as large groups of England fans gathered at Zagreb's main square and mingled with the home supporters.

Many of them took photos of each other and signed a giant England flag fans had spread across the square.

Riot police have been deployed in numbers to prevent any crowd trouble ahead of kickoff at 1700 GMT and said fans would be separated well before they reach the stadium.

REUTERS AY PM1658