The West Ham fan who went viral after single-handedly holding off Dutch hooligans has broken his silence, saying that he is “no hero”. Chris Knolls, known as ‘Knolls’, was filmed defending an area of the stand from a large group of AZ Alkmaar “ultras” at the AFAS stadium after West Ham beat Dutch team AZ Alkmaar in the Europa Conference League semi-final 1-0. According to reports, the area of the stand they were trying to attack contained the family and friends of West Ham players and staff. Knolls was widely praised online for his actions, and he’s now spoken about the events that transpired inside the stadium. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter The 58-year-old said he was “genuinely concerned” about the safety of people around him, adding that he thought the hooligans were “intent on causing trouble and I did not want them to get to those behind us”. He told The Mirror: “I saw them all congregate on the side of the pitch and then they broke down the barriers and headed to the first group of West Ham fans." “I know what they were intent on doing and was not going to let it happen," he added. Knolls told the publication that he “just decided I wasn’t going to let them come up”. He went on to say: “I just thought the best form of defence would be to get to the top of the stairs where they were coming up and just stood there and tried to stop them. I know they were swinging punches and I just did my best to stand there and take it.” Knolls went on to say that he doesn’t like “bullies”, also saying that his wife Karen was “not surprised” he had defended the people behind him. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

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Defining Dishes is a new IndyEats column that explores the significance of food at key moments in our lives. From recipes that have been passed down for generations, to flavours that hold a special place in our hearts, food shapes every part of our lives in ways we might not have ever imagined. I got my first job in Hanoi as an EFL (English as a Foreign Language) teacher and taught a kindergarten class at the weekends. The school had a mix of Vietnamese and other EFL teachers, so I was able to make a lot of really great friends who were very keen to educate all of us foreigners on the best local food. On my first day at the school, they took me to a bun cha stall nearby that was really, really popular and it was always full. They served it with strips of pork belly, which is uncommon. Quite often, you’d have to wait a little while to get a seat, but it was always worth it. Once, I saw a bride and groom dining there in their wedding outfits! My favourite thing about bun cha is the smell of smoky meat coming off the open-air grill. It would fill the air around you while you sat and waited for your food to arrive. That delicious smell is what I miss the most when I try to make it for myself in the UK but it’s really hard to recreate indoors. The way my Vietnamese friends taught me to eat it was to pour the nuoc cham – a sauce made from fish sauce, sugar, lime juice and water – all over the dish and mix it all up, but I know other people just dip the meat in it. I’m sure there’s no one correct or incorrect way to do it, but the sauce is so delicious, why wouldn’t you want to soak the whole thing in it? I spent one year in Hanoi and moved back to my parent’s house in York, where I grew up, in 2011. By this time, I’d done a few embarrassing TV adverts and little acting jobs in Hanoi, and I went on to do quite a lot of presenting work on little local channels and corporate videos. Then I came across a Sainsbury’s magazine, I think, that was running a competition by the British Herb Association, which I’d never heard of before. They were looking for people to cook a recipe using British-grown herbs. I decided to try making a bun cha at home by adapting a recipe by New Zealand-born US chef Bobby Chin. I’m sure I butchered it and Anglicised it (all those terrible things) because I’d never made it before. But I did use some fresh British herbs, coriander and mint that my parents grew in their garden, which was quite sweet. I filmed myself making it and submitted it for the competition, and in the end, I was invited to take part in the final. I’d really like to highlight that I am not a chef. I like my food and I enjoy cooking, but I’ve never pretended to be a chef. Anyway, I went to London and participated in the cook-off against two other ladies and was judged by Masterchef’s John Torode. Of course I’d seen him on TV quite a lot – he was fairly intimidating, to be honest. He was very friendly off-camera, but he plays a part when they’re rolling. I remember he came up to me and said: “Oh, you obviously much prefer cooking in your own home than in a professional kitchen.” I said: “Well, yes, I’m not a professional.” He was very complimentary about my dish, although he did highlight that there was a lack of smokiness in the meat, which was a very fair point. But I won the competition somehow and that’s how it linked me to getting my first proper TV presenting gig. I saw an advert for a TV channel in Mumbai that was searching for a presenter who could also cook, so I sent off my details and a video of me making bun cha in the competition. A couple of days later, they got in touch with me and seemed quite pleased by my enthusiasm. I was flown out to Delhi just two weeks later. It seemed too good to be true, but I started presenting on a show called Quest, which was initially only broadcast in Mumbai on Travelxp. It’s now an international channel that broadcasts in about 30 countries. The show had me visiting chefs and families around India and learning about “forgotten dishes” that people were rediscovering and cooking. It was an incredible opportunity and I feel very fortunate to be able to do what I do. Maybe I should be thanking Sainsbury’s magazine. But it’s bun cha and Hanoi that I have the most love for. When I make it now, I have this image in my mind of the place that I would go with my teacher friends and I’m doing my very best to emulate that flavour. I’m sure if I went back now and tried the authentic version again, I’d think: “God, I’m just butchering it.” But you know, I’m doing my best. Alex Outhwaite is a travel TV presenter. She has hosted several travel shows, including ‘The Wanderer’ on Prime Video. Read More It’s easier to make baklava at home than you might think Get set for Wimbledon with top pastry chef’s strawberry recipes Pinch of Nom: Healthy eating doesn’t have to cost the earth

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