Forty-two people were arrested and 15 police officers injured in clashes in downtown Manchester before and after Russian team Zenit St. Petersburg beat Scottish club Rangers 2-0 on Wednesday night. Rangers' quest for a first European trophy in 36 years ended in heartbreak as Zenit St Petersburg claimed Russia's second UEFA Cup in the space of four years with a 2-0 win in Wednesday's final. The trophy was effectively settled 18 minutes from time, when midfielder Igor Denisov combined smoothly with playmaker Andrei Arshavin before slotting home Zenit's opening goal. Konstantin Zyrianov added a second in stoppage time to make sure Zenit emulated the achievement of 2005 winners CSKA Moscow and condemned the tens of thousands of Rangers supporters who had descended on Manchester to a miserable journey back to Scotland. Despite the official allocation being far less, around 30,000 Rangers fans managed to find their way inside the City of Manchester Stadium with around 100,000 more in fan zones around the city and a packed-out beamback party taking place back at Ibrox. But the night ended in disappointment for the Glasgow giants, just as it had done for city rivals Celtic at this stage back in 2003, when they lost to Jose Mourinho's Porto in the final. Violence occurred after the game as hundreds of Rangers fans -- described by police as a pack of baying wolves -- went on the rampage. An estimated 100,000 Rangers fans -- most without tickets -- traveled to Manchester from Scotland for the game. Beer and alcohol were on sale all day, and fans were allowed to drink in the street. A Russian fan was stabbed outside the City of Manchester Stadium before the match, and five people later were arrested. The fan's injuries were described as non life-threatening. What happened last night was a disgrace, Brown told reporters at his monthly news conference in London. It was a minority, but it was completely unacceptable and for that to happen in a public place where the Manchester authorities had made available the facilities for people to enjoy the match.
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