Alexander Aitkenhead, 38, a Glasgow Rangers supporter, was jailed for life after stabbing his brother-in-law to death in a row about his sister in 1987.

He was 17 at the time of his conviction and was released more than a year ago. He served an extra year on his sentence after punching and kicking a prison officer in 1992.

Photographs taken on Wednesday night after the match between Rangers and Zenit St Petersburg show Mr Aitkenhead angrily confronting police officers who were trying to contain rioting supporters in Manchester city centre.

As he pointed in the face of one officer, a police Alsatian lunged at him and bit his right arm and leg, drawing blood in both places.

Speaking from his home in Glasgow, Mr Aitkenhead said he had not been instigating any trouble and that the police had overreacted.

He said: "The police came down the road and ushered us into a hotel. Hotel security then threw us back in the street. The police dog branch had turned up and they went mental. One of my friends fell and a policeman was about to hit him over the head with his baton. I ran over to stop him.

"The dog bit me on the hand and I fell over. It got hold of me by the leg and dragged me off the pavement into the road."

He added: "My conviction is in the past, it is not relevant."

A former prison officer, who knew Mr Aitkenhead, said: "People will be saying 'look at this poor guy who had his leg bitten by a vicious dog'. But let me tell you, he is no poor guy. "I felt sick when I saw him in the paper. It shows the calibre of people who were involved in this."

Trouble started in Manchester city centre when an open air screen showing the match, which Rangers lost 2-0, failed to work. Fifteen police officers and a police dog were injured and a Russian supporter was stabbed. Eleven Rangers fans have been charged with various offences.