The pressure on Newcastle United manager Steve Bruce has intensified after reports emerged of a training-ground confrontation with midfielder Matt Ritchie.
Newcastle currently find themselves deep in relegation trouble with 12 games of the Premier League season remaining, having won just two of their last 15 league matches to slip to within three points of the relegation zone.
They will drop into the bottom three if Fulham manage to beat Tottenham Hotspur at Craven Cottage on Thursday evening.
A report in the Daily Mail suggested that Ritchie, who moved to the club from Bournemouth for £12 million in 2016, called Bruce "a coward" during the bust-up which followed comments by his manager after the 1-1 draw with Wolves on Saturday.
In a post-match interview, Bruce suggested the midfielder had failed to pass on tactical information to his teammates quickly enough after coming on as a second-half substitute, which helped lead to Wolves' equaliser.
Defender Jamal Lewis, goalkeeper Martin Dubravka and striker Joelinton were also criticised by their manager.
The previous week, Karl Darlow was also said to be unhappy after finding out he was about to be dropped in favour of Dubravka for the Wolves game after reading about it first in the media.
Bruce said to Sky Sports after the draw at St James' Park: "Unfortunately, Matty didn't get the directions on quick enough, the instructions of how we were doing it [making the change]. We'll have to concede that one and make sure we do our instructions from the sideline."
This is thought to have infuriated Ritchie with the Daily Mail story suggesting the 31-year-old was involved in a furious row with Bruce at training on Tuesday.
The club has not commented on the incident, but multiple British media outlets are reporting that the player has since apologised to players and staff for what he said and that the matter is now considered closed.
Ritchie was a key member of the team under Rafael Benitez but has slipped down the pecking order since Bruce's arrival.
He came close to leaving Newcastle in January but a move back to Bournemouth late in the transfer window fell through.
Bruce said at the time the player was "frustrated" at his lack of football and would "need to get his head down until the end of the season".
The Magpies head for 19th-placed West Brom on Sunday with leading scorer Callum Wilson, Miguel Almiron and Allan Saint-Maximin, who have scored 16 of their 27 league goals to date this season, all out injured. The trio might not play again until April.
Keane on …
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Mohamed Salah’s debut campaign at Anfield: “Unbelievable. He’s been phenomenal. You can name the front three, but for him on a personal level, he’s been unreal. He’s been great to watch and hopefully he can continue now until the end of the season - which I’m sure he will, because he’s been in fine form. He’s been incredible this season.”
Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s instant impact at former club LA Galaxy: “Brilliant. It’s been a great start for him and for the club. They were crying out for another big name there. They were lacking that, for the prestige of LA Galaxy. And now they have one of the finest stars. I hope they can go win something this year.”
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Country-size land deals
US interest in purchasing territory is not as outlandish as it sounds. Here's a look at some big land transactions between nations:
Louisiana Purchase
If Donald Trump is one who aims to broker "a deal of the century", then this was the "deal of the 19th Century". In 1803, the US nearly doubled in size when it bought 2,140,000 square kilometres from France for $15 million.
Florida Purchase Treaty
The US courted Spain for Florida for years. Spain eventually realised its burden in holding on to the territory and in 1819 effectively ceded it to America in a wider border treaty.
Alaska purchase
America's spending spree continued in 1867 when it acquired 1,518,800 km2 of Alaskan land from Russia for $7.2m. Critics panned the government for buying "useless land".
The Philippines
At the end of the Spanish-American War, a provision in the 1898 Treaty of Paris saw Spain surrender the Philippines for a payment of $20 million.
US Virgin Islands
It's not like a US president has never reached a deal with Denmark before. In 1917 the US purchased the Danish West Indies for $25m and renamed them the US Virgin Islands.
Gwadar
The most recent sovereign land purchase was in 1958 when Pakistan bought the southwestern port of Gwadar from Oman for 5.5bn Pakistan rupees.
Jebel Ali Dragons 26 Bahrain 23
Dragons
Tries: Hayes, Richards, Cooper
Cons: Love
Pens: Love 3
Bahrain
Tries: Kenny, Crombie, Tantoh
Cons: Phillips
Pens: Phillips 2
