Tottenham Hotspur captain Hugo Lloris confronted teammate Son Heung-min at half-time during Monday's match against Everton, pushing the South Korean after a defensive lapse. The incident required intervention from Giovani Lo Celso, Harry Winks, and Moussa Sissoko to separate the pair. Despite the altercation, Spurs won 1-0 and the players made up by the final whistle.
Manager Jose Mourinho described the clash as 'beautiful', claiming it was part of his strategy to demand more from his players. However, many observers viewed it as a sign of dysfunction in the Tottenham dressing room under Mourinho's leadership.
This is not the first time teammates have come to blows on the pitch. In 2005, Newcastle United's Lee Bowyer and Kieron Dyer fought during a 3-0 loss to Aston Villa, with Bowyer throwing punches after Dyer allegedly called him 's***'. Both were sent off, and Bowyer received a seven-match ban and a fine of six weeks' wages.
In 1995, Blackburn Rovers' David Batty and Graeme Le Saux clashed during a Champions League match against Spartak Moscow, which Blackburn lost 3-0. The Spartak manager quipped that his players faced 11 men fighting each other rather than the opposition.
More recently, in 2016, Preston North End's Jermaine Beckford and Eoin Doyle were both sent off after a physical altercation during a Championship match against Sheffield Wednesday, leading the club to refund travelling fans.
