PREMIER - City fan left in critical condition after being attacked in Belgium

Five people have been arrested after a fight on the way home after a Champions League match between Manchester City and Club Brugge in Belgium left a Manchester City fan in critical condition.

The City supporter, a Belgian native, was thrashed at a motorway rest stop when rival fans stole his team scarf.

After a dispute that erupted inside the service station shop and went outside on the forecourt, police stated they had made five arrests.

"His life is in mortal danger," a police statement said. "The victim is a 63-year-old from Ninove."

The football scarf was taken in the shop by one of the suspects, according to the investigation's early results. He took it outside and was challenged by the victim outside the shop, where there were several witnesses.

The victim's son operates the Manchester City fan group 'Blue Moon Belgium,' with Kevin de Bruyne, a Belgian midfielder, as its star player.

"They left my father for dead after an act of mindless violence," the son wrote on social media.

"My father was attacked in a cowardly manner because of his City scarf during a stopover in Drongen.

"We hope that the perpetrators are found and punished. We have been all over England and the rest of Europe, never aggression. We come to Belgium once and you are left for dead."

Club Brugge in a statement condemned the act: "The club strongly disapproves of any act of violence, both inside and outside the stadium and in all circumstances advocates the values of tolerance. Our hearts go out to the family and friends of the Manchester City fan," Club Brugge posted on their club website.