Fans smashed a visiting coach's car and tried to charge into the away team's dressing¹ room after a match in eastern China, saying it was in response to a player raising a middle finger at the crowd, a newspaper reported.

During halftime in Saturday's Super League match between Hangzhou-based home side Zhejiang Lucheng and Tianjin, home fans jeered² and threw rubbish at Tianjin substitute Li Xingcan while he was warming up on the pitch.

Sunday's Beijing Times newspaper reported that after the match, which Zhejiang lost 3-1, several thousand home fans gathered outside the Tianjin dressing room chanting "Number 14, come out! Tianjin apologise".

"They also tried to charge in, but luckily police and security guards at the ground intercepted³ them," it added.

Ground authorities opened an emergency exit to allow the players to safely board a bus and exit the stadium, but the car carrying Tianjin's Czech coach Jozef Jarabinsky was attacked by fans, the paper said.

The newspaper said Li had denied making any rude gesture. "Fans started swearing at me and throwing bottles and things. At the time I just waved a hand at the crowd to ask them to stop throwing things," he told the paper