Raheem Sterling-Joe Gomez clash: Liverpool defender pictured with scratch mark under eye
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ByEurosport
Updated 12/11/2019 at 16:54 GMT
Joe Gomez was left with a scratch mark under his right eye after an altercation which saw Raheem Sterling dropped for England’s match against Montenegro on Thursday.
Joe Gomez was left with a scratch mark under his right eye after an altercation which saw Raheem Sterling dropped for England’s match against Montenegro on Thursday
Image credit: Reuters
Sterling reportedly confronted Gomez when he arrived for England duty this week and the pair had to be separated.
Jordan Henderson is understood to have played peacemaker over the phone and helped resolved the issue between the two players, who had also squared up to each other during Liverpool's 3-1 win over Manchester City.
Gareth Southgate has removed Sterling from consideration for Thursday's qualifier against Montenegro, although he has remained with the squad and should feature against Kosovo on Sunday.
"I think it was important to come and speak publicly so that the players don’t need to deal with that going forward," Southgate said.
"Raheem in his post last night explained that for a very brief moment his emotions ran over. It would be correct to say that that was not the same for Joe.
"We have some excellent senior players who have played a part in bringing everybody together.
"When you’ve made a decision like that it’s going to be public on Wednesday or Thursday anyway and I’d rather deal with it now than on the day of the game."
‘Do you want to go back to kindergarten?’
Paul Parker disagrees with the decision to drop Raheem Sterling from England’s qualifier with Montenegro, but adds that he has little sympathy for the Manchester City winger.
"Firstly, why was Raheem Sterling and Joe Gomez’s bust-up made public? Why has someone put this out there when it’s obvious it would disrupt England’s preparations for the upcoming games?," he says in his latest Eurosport column.
"Secondly, I would have dealt with the ‘throat grab’ differently. The pair should have had their heads banged together at St George’s Park and told:
You had your rivalry at the weekend, now you’re on the same team representing your country. Grow up. Deal with it. Move on.
"Give Sterling an earful. Question his attitude. Ask whether he wants to step back into kindergarten. But deal with it internally, then still play him against Montenegro and let him prove to his team-mates that he made a childish mistake."
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