Liverpool's Darwin Nunez in huge brawl with fans as punches thrown at Copa America

Uruguay's forward Darwin Nunez was embroiled in a fiery brawl as punches were exchanged between the Liverpool ace and spectators after his nation was ousted from the Copa America by Colombia.

The tension escalated between the two countries following the final whistle, with Colombia narrowly securing a 1-0 victory courtesy of Jefferson Lerma's header in the 39th minute. Once the on-pitch scuffle subsided, the Uruguay players headed towards the stands.

Nunez spearheaded a group of Uruguay players into the crowd before hostility erupted from Colombian fans, leading to a large-scale fight between the players and the supporters. After being struck by a fan, Nunez was seen defending himself, with footage revealing him retaliating against several spectators.

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Later, the Liverpool star was spotted embracing his young son on the pitch, who might have been involved in the chaotic scenes. Barcelona's Ronald Araujo was also part of the incident, with thousands of shocked fans capturing the altercation on their mobile phones.

Security personnel intervened to separate the two groups, attempting to escort the Uruguay players to the dressing room as swiftly as possible, reports the Mirror.

As reported by Uruguayan publication El Pais, the Uruguay players ventured into the crowd to back their family and friends who were seated just behind the team bench. With a significant majority of Colombian fans inside the stadium, the relatives of Uruguay stars were subjected to abuse.

Nunez spearheaded the charge of players into the stands as their family and friends were ushered onto the pitch for safety. The situation quickly deteriorated, becoming physical.

Uruguay national team director Jorge Giordano and press officer Felipe Cotelo found themselves embroiled in the chaos.

The report also mentioned that Uruguay midfielder Manuel Ugarte tended to his injured relatives on the field. Several Uruguayan supporters sustained serious injuries during the melee, finding themselves overwhelmed by the larger group of Colombian fans.

Uruguay's defender Jose Maria Gimenez recounted the ordeal, labelling it a "disaster" due to the absence of police. "It was a disaster; there was no police and we had to defend our families," he expressed.

Gimenez further criticised the situation, attributing the violence to a minority of overzealous fans. "This is because of two or three who have one drink too many. A certain sector of the Colombian fans made an avalanche where our loved ones were," he elaborated.

In light of these events, governing body CONMEBOL is set to conduct a thorough review before Sunday's Copa America final, which sees Colombia facing off against Argentina in Miami. Despite being on an impressive 28-game unbeaten streak, spanning more than two years, Colombia will play as underdogs to Argentina.

Argentina are on the hunt for a third consecutive trophy, following Lionel Messi's triumphs in the Copa America 2021 and the World Cup a year later. Prior to 2021, Messi had not won an international trophy, but now he has the opportunity to further cement his legacy this Sunday in his new home city, having signed with MLS team Inter Miami last year.