Serbia's Euro 2016 Qualifying Match Against Albania Abandoned Due to Riot [Photos]

The Group I Euro 2016 qualifying fixture between Serbia and Albania was abandoned just before halftime due to a full scale riot following a flag incident at the Red Star Stadium.

The match, where no Albanian fans were allowed due to there being political tension between the two countries, was disrupted when a remote controlled mini drone carrying an Albanian flag hovered over the pitch.

The flag was eventually taken down by Serbia's Aleksandar Mitrovic, and this prompted an angry outburst from Albanian players, who went on and pushed the Anderlecht forward.

After that all hell broke loose as a dozen Serbian fans invaded the pitch and started attacking the Albanian players, who were eventually forced to retreat into the tunnels when they had some flares thrown at them from the crowd.

Finally, the authorities brought in riot police to control the situation, and the match was eventually called off by English referee Martin Atkinson after a half-an-hour delay.

Albanian captain Lorik Cana later revealed that his team were forced to abandon the match due to them being in no "psychological or physical state to continue playing" following the riot.

"I saw my players being attacked and hit even inside the tunnel, and even by the stewards. We were not in the right psychological or physical state to continue playing," Cana told Albanian television.

Meanwhile, Serbian captain Branislav Ivanovic, who said that his side wanted to continue the match, insisted that he and the rest of his team did everything to protect the Albanian players in the tunnel.

"On behalf of my team, all I can say is that we wanted to carry on and that we shielded the Albanian players every step of the way to the tunnel (after the riot broke out)," the Chelsea defender told Reuters.

"The Albanian team said they were unfit physically and mentally to carry on after talking to the officials and they will now decide the fate of this match. We can only regret that football took a back seat but it is difficult to draw any conclusions or make any comments now."

Here are some photos of the riot: