*Match stopped for half an hour in closing stages at El Madrigal

*Canister thrown on to pitch which produced a thick cloud of smoke

*Fans left the ground in obvious distress

*Celta Vigo ran out 2-0 winners when the match was restarted

Villarreal’s La Liga match at home to Celta Vigo was halted shortly before the final whistle and delayed by about half an hour after what appeared to be a tear gas canister was thrown on to the pitch on Saturday.

Celta were leading 1-0 at the Madrigal and there were about three minutes left when the canister, which local media said contained tear gas, landed near the visitors’ goal and began spewing out a thick cloud of white smoke.

Both sets of players, some of whom were clearly suffering from the effects of the gas, retreated inside the stadium and fans quickly left the ground, with many covering their mouths and noses and in obvious distress.

Celta goalkeeper Yoel Rodriguez was seen running away from the smoke rubbing his eyes.

The visitors were leading 1-0 when the game was interrupted after Fabian Orellana’s score in the

The game was restarted and Celta’s Manuel Agudo scored off a free kick in the 90th minute to give the visitors a 2-0 victory.

Villarreal president Fernando Roig said police are looking for the person who threw the bomb. He said the device had released tear gas and was similar to ones used by police.

‘Villarreal condemns and laments what has happened,’ Roig said. ‘This type of act in no way represents our fan base, which is calm and controlled. I am convinced that this was done by someone who came from outside to hurt Villarreal.’

Villarreal midfielder Bruno Soriano added, ‘These things can’t happen in our house. I hope the person is found.’

Celta coach and former Barcelona player Luis Enrique said he had never experienced anything like it in a game before.

‘Everyone thought it was a flare, but when we saw (goalkeeper) Yoel (Rodriguez’s) eyes, which were bright red, we immediately realized that it was something more dangerous,’ he said. ‘This should never have happened.’

The loss left Villarreal in fifth place, four points behind the final Champions League spot.

—Daily Mail