Chelsea fans threatened with pepper spray by French police inside Parc des Princes during Champions League defeat by Paris Saint-Germain

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French police threatened to use pepper spray on Chelsea supporters as tensions escalated during their Champions League last-16 tie with PSG in Paris on Tuesday night.

Officers from France's anti-riot CRS unit pointed canisters at fans in the away end at the Parc des Princes in Chelsea's 2-1 defeat in a bid to calm them down.

And while last year's scenes from outside the stadium were not repeated on a wide scale, there was still confrontation between fans and police inside the ground.

A French police officer at the Parc des Princes aims his pepper spray canister at Chelsea fans on Tuesday 

Chelsea fans were ordered to sit down and had pepper spray canisters aimed at them in online footage

Security inside the Parc des Princes watch Chelsea fans before the game. NOTE: There is no suggestion that either the security officers or supporters in this picture were involved in the spray incident

Video footage has since emerged online that appeared to show police officers threatening to use pepper spray again to calm down Chelsea fans following Mikel’s close range strike, with supporters from both sides in such close proximity to each other.

In the footage, Chelsea fans were ordered to sit down as officers pointed the canisters towards the away section.

Chelsea went on to lose the game 2-1 but Mikel's away goal could prove crucial heading into the second leg at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday, March 9.

Edinson Cavani (second right) celebrates after scoring PSG's winner on the night against Chelsea

John Obi Mikel (right) celebrates with Gary Cahill after scoring a crucial away goal for Chelsea