Flamengo Club Stars Varela, Gerson Exchange Blows During Training
Uruguayan defender and former Manchester United player, Guillermo Varela, 30, and Brazilian midfielder and former Roma player, Gerson Santos da Silva, 26, traded punches on Tuesday during a training session at their club, Flamengo.
Flamengo confirmed there had been an “altercation” between its club players in a statement.
In a brief statement on social media, the Rio de Janeiro club said, “The altercation between Gerson and Varela was resolved internally”.
According to Brazilian sports news site Globo Esporte, The two internationals got into an argument which escalated into an exchange of punches after Gerson fouled Varela during training and Varela suffered what may be a broken nose.
This is the latest violent episode for Brazil’s most popular football team and the second incident in just over two weeks at Flamengo.
On July 29, physical trainer Pablo Fernandez was sacked after he punched Pedro, one of the club’s most popular players when the Brazilian international reportedly ignored his orders to warm up for a match.
The club are currently fourth in the Brazilian league, trailing surprise leaders Botafogo, their cross-town rivals, by 15 points.
Credit: AFP