Football Teammates Who HATED Each Other

10 Sets of Teammates Who Hated Each Other John Terry and Wayne Bridge Now, you don't need to be a sports psychologist to work out why Wayne Bridge wasn't too fond of John Terry. Bridge dated a woman called Vanessa Perenzel for five years during his time at Chelsea. The relationship ended when the left-back moved to Manchester City in 2009, but the pair remained in touch as they had a son together. At that point, Terry allegedly had an affair with Perenzel. He tried to keep the story secret by taking out a super injunction, but this was overturned by a judge and British newspapers were free to spill the beans. Bridge and Terry were England teammates, but the left-back decided to retire from international duty once the alleged affair became public. When the two men next came face-to-face before a Chelsea vs Man City game, Bridge refused to shake Terry's hand. Mauro Icardi and Maxi Lopez A woman was also at the heart of the dispute between Mauro Icardi and Maxi Lopez, who played together at Sampdoria in the 2012-13 season. Lopez was married to Wanda Nara, and the couple had three sons together. He became friends with Icardi, a fellow Argentine. Lopez helped him feel settled in Italy, and the pair even went on holiday together. Little did he know that Icardi was having an affair with his wife when Lopez found out he broke off his relationships with Nara and Icardi. Unsurprisingly, the public sided with Lopez. Icardi has only played eight times for Argentina, and it's been suggested that his betrayal of his former friend is one of the main reasons why he's been overlooked. Lopez is close with Lionel Messi, so that'd make sense. Icardi and Nara are now married and have two daughters together. Teddy Sheringham and Andy Cole Teddy Sheringham and Andy Cole's feud dates back to 1995. Cole was about to come on for Sheringham to make his England debut against Uruguay. I was so nervous it was frightening, he remembered years later. Cole expected Sheringham to wish him good luck or shake his hand, but his future Manchester United teammate simply ignored him. Cole never forgave him. The strike pair spent four years together at Old Trafford. They won three Premier League titles, an FA Cup and the Champions League in the same side. Yet Cole and Sheringham never said a word to each other. Roy Keane once had to break up a fight between them in the tunnel, before Keane went for Sheringham himself. Things got so bad that Cole said he'd rather have a chat with Neil Ruddock, the man who broke his leg, than Sheringham. Kolo Toure and William Gallas Kolo Toure and William Gallas played together at centre-back for Arsenal for three years. The hostility between them got so bad that they refused to talk to each other on the pitch. Gallas alienated many of his teammates with his bizarre reaction to a two-all with Birmingham in 2008. Arsenal conceded a late goal, and the Frenchman sat alone in the centre circle after the final whistle. Gallas was then stripped of the captaincy the following season, after publicly questioning the bravery of his colleagues. Toure wasn't impressed with his fellow defenders' behaviour. The rift only got bigger when Gallas had a go at Toure after a nil-nil draw with Aston Villa. By then, Toure already knew the situation couldn't continue. Me and Gallas, we didn't talk to each other at all, he said. One of us had to go, and it was me. It was coming down to me really, because I didn't want to put the team in a difficult position. So I was the one who said I wanted to go. Zlatan Ibrahimović and Aguci Onyewu Zlatan Ibrahimović is a big personality who has quite a high opinion of himself. One man who didn't want a Zlatan was Aguci Onyewu, who played alongside the Swede at AC Milan. In fact, that's probably an understatement. The two once came to blows after a training ground incident. Onyewu was on the end of a dangerous tackle from Ibrahimović. Some players wouldn't be brave enough to confront the 6-foot-5-inch striker, who's a black belt in taekwondo. Onyewu didn't care about that. He laid into Zlatan, who was left with a broken rib after the brawl. AC Milan insisted the pair patched it up afterwards, but Onyewu still left the club at the end of the season. Mathieu Valbuena and Karim Benzema Karim Benzema is closing in on 100 appearances for France. If it wasn't for his long-running dispute with Mathieu Valbuena, he'd have reached a century of caps a while ago. In November 2015, Benzema was arrested for allegedly blackmailing Valbuena over the recording of a sex tape, which supposedly featured the attacking midfielder. The French Football Federation soon suspended Benzema from the national team, and the striker missed the 2018 World Cup as the high-profile case rumbled on. The incident didn't help Valbuena either. He last played for Les Bleus in 2015, before the scandal came to light. In 2021, Benzema was found guilty of conspiring to blackmail his former France teammate. The Real Madrid striker was given a one-year suspended sentence and handed a €750,000 fine. Craig Bellamy and John Arriza Throughout his career, Craig Bellamy was known to be a difficult character. The fiery Welshman often fell out with teammates, but the animosity between him and John Arriza reached new heights. Ahead of a Champions League tie against Barcelona in 2007, Rafa Benitez took his Liverpool team away for some warm weather training. The players were supposed to be in a relaxed mood, not Bellamy. After an argument which started when Arriza refused to sing karaoke, Bellamy attacked the Norwegian with a golf club. He tried to hit my shins which would have ended my career, but I managed to pull my leg away in time, Arriza remembered. Curiously, Bellamy and Arriza were the two players who scored as Liverpool beat Barca 2-1. After his goal, Bellamy celebrated by swinging an imaginary golf club. Jens Lehmann and Oliver Kahn Now, when you think about it, it's surprising that goalkeepers don't fall out more often. Jens Lehmann and Oliver Kahn were both competing to be Germany's number one, a little bit of tension was inevitable. To be fair, these two took it beyond, a little bit of tension. Both wanted what was best for Germany, but there was genuine animosity between them. Lehmann first became Kahn's understudy in 1998. Five years later, the Arsenal goalkeeper stated publicly that he should be Germany's first-choice shot-stopper. Things quickly got personal. Lehmann poked fun at Kahn after he had an affair with a 21-year-old barmaid while his wife was pregnant. A few years later, Kahn mocked Lehmann for losing his place to Manuel Almunia at Arsenal. Lehmann is constantly provoking and he's been doing it for years. Kahn said in 2004, the situation is escalating and has to be resolved. It never really was. Romario and Edmundo When two strikers have great on-field chemistry, it's easy to assume they're also close off the pitch. That wasn't true for Romario and Edmundo, who somehow managed to develop an excellent strike partnership despite their mutual dislike. The duo played together for Vasco da Gama and the Brazil national team. They both starred as Vasco beat Manchester United in the Club World Cup in 2000. Look away now, Gary Neville. The strikers fell out in unusual circumstances. Romario owned a bar and placed a picture of Edmundo sitting on a deflated ball above the door to the toilets. When Edmundo found out, he wasn't best pleased. Their friendship soon broke down. Later, when Romario was offered a new contract by Vasco, he said he'd only sign if he could take over the captaincy from Edmundo. And at the time, Romario broke ranks and took a penalty which was supposed to be Edmundo's. Maybe he should have listened to his partner. Romario smashed the ball against the crossbar. Kevin De Bruyne and Thibaut Courtois When you watch Belgium play, you probably wouldn't realise Kevin De Bruyne and Thibaut Courtois don't get on. The pair have been estranged for years after De Bruyne's girlfriend, Caroline Linnian, cheated on him with the goalkeeper in 2014. Linnian insisted it only happened because De Bruyne had cheated on her previously. Either way, the midfielder was angry with Courtois. They still haven't patched things up eight years later. Although I still can't believe what Courtois has done, we continue to work together professionally, De Bruyne wrote in his autobiography. Still, it must have felt particularly sweet for KDB when he scored a penalty against Courtois in the Champions League in 2020.