A training camp altercation between Raheem Sterling and Joe Gomez was likened to a family argument by England manager Gareth Southgate on Tuesday after the players' club rivalry spilled over into the international arena.
A day after they clashed on the field during a high-profile Premier League game between Manchester City and Liverpool, Sterling and Gomez were involved in what the English Football Association described as a ''disturbance in a private team area'' after they joined up with the national team on Monday.
Sterling was apparently the aggressor in the exchange - the winger acknowledged in a post on Instagram that ''emotions got the better of me'' - and was dropped by Southgate for the European Championship qualifier against Montenegro on Thursday.