Sunday’s defeat to Wolves saw two Sheffield United players trade blows at each other in one of the biggest teammate fights the Premier League has seen in recent years.
Vinicius Souza and Jack Robinson squared up with one another shortly after the Blades conceded what would be the only goal of the match.
They were separated by teammates, with referee Darren Bond opting not to caution either player.
Sheffield United pair Vinícius Souza and Jack Robinson have a swipe at each other! 😳🚫 pic.twitter.com/LSpyPPXqKP
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) February 25, 2024
The result leaves Chris Wilder’s team rooted to the foot of the Premier League table, eight points from safety. With relegation looming and no sign of a late survival bid in sight, tempers are naturally flaring.
But while they don’t happen every week, teammate fights are far from a rare occurrence in football.
To highlight this, we’ve picked out some of the biggest bust-ups between players on the same side over the years.
Five Of The Biggest Teammate Fights In Football
5. Ibrahimovic & Onyewu
Former Manchester United striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic was not shy of telling teammates what he thought of them.
The Swedish enigma threatened to break Rafael Van der Vaart’s legs at Ajax, and once punched Juventus colleague Jonathan Zebina in the face.
But most memorable was his scrap with ex-Newcastle man, Oguchi Onyewu. The two played together at AC Milan in Serie A, with Zlatan recalling the fight in his autobiography.
He said: “I head-butted him, and we flew at each other,”
“We wanted to tear each other limb from limb. It was brutal. We were rolling around, punching and kneeing each other. We were crazy and furious — it was like life and death.”
4. Lloris & Son
In 2020, Tottenham laboured to a 1-0 win over Everton, with frustrations boiling over at half time.
Despite leading, Hugo Lloris was furios with Son Heung-min’s laziness in tracking back. The pair got into an altercation and had to be separated by teammates Harry Winks and Giovani Lo Celso.
It may not have been the worst teammate fight on this list, but is well remembered for their manager’s reaction. Instead of disciplining his players, Jose Mourinho praised them, calling the incident “beautiful”.
🗣 "It was beautiful, you need to demand from each other. I was really pleased"
Jose Mourinho on Hugo Lloris & Son's fight at half-time pic.twitter.com/ju6Jg29zn3
— Football Daily (@footballdaily) July 6, 2020
3. Ljungberg & Mellberg
Another couple of Swedes to add to Ibrahimovic, Freddie Ljungberg and Olof Mellberg had a full-blooded training ground altercation that ended up more comical than anything.
During a training session ahead of the 2002 World Cup, former Arsenal star Ljungberg had a hilarious scrap with Aston Villa’s Mellberg, with the pair dragging down a teammate with them.
#OTD 2002 🗓️ When Villa's Olof Mellberg tried to cripple Freddie Ljungberg whilst they on international duty.
Just put your Premier League and FA Cup medals on the table Fred.
Envy, pure envy.pic.twitter.com/TzxNc4W5pc
— Briffa (@goonerbeau) May 22, 2021
2. Shearer & Gillespie
Emotions often run high on the field, and players can be forgiven for seeing red in the heat of battle. But in 1997, a dropped piece of cutlery saw Alan shearer put Kieth Gillespie in hospital.
The former Newcastle duo ended up in one of the most brutal teammate fights ever publicised, as Gillespie explained to talkSPORT in 2016.
He said: “We were away on a mid-season break, and I knocked some cutlery off the table accidentally,”
“He looked over to say ‘pick that up’, and I just didn’t like the way he was talking to me.
“I just turned round and said: ‘Right. Outside now!’ And he took me up on the offer.
“I didn’t think he would, but I was a bit too proud to back down. We ended up going outside, and I took one swing and missed, and he hit me – and that was goodnight.
“I did actually spend a night in hospital. Because when he hit me I fell and hit my head on a plant pot. I was unconscious.
“He came and saw me the next day, and we had a laugh about it.”
Thankfully Gillespie saw the funny side, or else Shearer could well have found himself in serious trouble.
1. Le Saux & Batty
And rounding out our list of the biggest teammate fights is former Blackburn Rovers pair, David Batty and Graeme Le Saux.
After famously winning the Premier League in 1995, Blackburn suffered a woeful Champions League campaign the following year.
They travelled to Spartak Moscow in round five still looking for their first group stage win. But with Rovers 3-0 down in Russia, Batty and Le Saux lost their cool and traded blows.
#OTD 1995: During a 3-0 defeat at Spartak Moscow, Blackburn players Graham Le Saux and David Batty fight one another on the pitch. The Daily Mirror headline reads, "Smack in the USSR". Blackburns post-title winning hangover continues.#9596season pic.twitter.com/VfP38MPwWU
— Always Next Year (@always_next_yr) November 22, 2023
After the game, Spartak coach Oleg Romanstev joked: “Before the match I told my players they will be playing against 11 guys ready to fight for each other for 90 minutes… not with each other.”
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