Paris: The Russian football fans behind the violence surrounding the Marseille fan violence were "trained fighters who kill", Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said during a visit to France yesterday.

Russian and English supporters clash at the end of their teams' Euro 2016 match in Marseille last week. Pic/AFP

"I cannot rule out that they were prepared. They were trained fighters who kill," Poroshenko told French television ahead of a meeting with his French counterpart Francois Hollande.

Two Britons remain in a coma in hospital after being seriously injured in the Marseille mayhem. They were among 35 mostly British fans hurt in the three days of violence.

Three Russian fans were jailed for up to two years, while six England fans were jailed for up to six months. French prosecutors said the Russian fans in Marseille had targeted England supporters in an orchestrated "hunt".

Twenty Russians were expelled from France, including far-right fan leader Alexander Shprygin.