Diego Costa’s stand-off with Premier League champions Chelsea is just the latest in a long line of disputes between players and their employers.
Costa, 28, had been informed by his boss Antonio Conte that he has no future at the club and having been frozen out of the first-team squad, the Brazil-born Spain international has gone home to Brazil.
With the striker due to report for training two weeks ago, he insisted he has no intention of returning to West London after the way he was treated by Conte.
Here, we take a look five infamous examples of player standoffs.
FRENCH WORLD CUP SQUAD’S ‘BUSMAN’S HOLIDAY’
Probably the most famous protest by a national side as the entire squad – captained by Patrice Evra and including Thierry Henry – refused to train after Nicolas Anelka’s expulsion during the 2010 World Cup.
Their fury at coach Raymond Domenech had been provoked by the sending home of Anelka after the striker launched a foul-mouthed tirade at his coach during half-time in their opening group game defeat to Mexico..
Unsurprisingly given the venomous atmosphere, France bowed out in the first round.
Evra, Anelka and others were severely disciplined on their return whilst little has been heard of Domenech since.
BLAME IT ON THE BOGARDE
Diego Costa will have to go some lengths to outdo Dutch international Winston Bogarde in causing as much trouble for Chelsea.
Claudio Ranieri disliked him so much that he wanted the player to leave just weeks after taking over from Gianluca Vialli in 2000. Bogarde dug his heels in and stayed for four years, despite being dropped first to the reserves and then the youth team.
He justified his behaviour by declaring in his biography: “This world is about money (he was on a reported £40,000 a week), so when you are offered those millions you take them. Few people will ever earn so many. I am one of the few fortunates who do. I may be one of the worst buys in the history of the Premiership but I don’t care.”
TEVEZ REFUSES WALK-ON PART
Argentinian striker Carlos Tevez played up to his nickname of ‘Apache’ by refusing to warm up during Manchester City’s Champions League clash against Bayern Munich in 2011.
Manager Roberto Mancini said Tevez, then 28, would never play for the club again.
But a combination of his monster wages and the huge fee City were demanding meant there were no takers.
Tevez holidayed in Argentina and considered retiring before eventually returning to the first team in March 2012. He left in 2013 for Juventus.
VAN HOOIJDONK LIGHTS FOREST FIRE
Dutch striker Pierre Van Hooijdonk was instrumental in Nottingham Forest’s return to the Premier League in the late 1990s but he went on strike at the beginning of the 1998/99 season because he felt furious about key players being let go.
He subsequently trained at his old club NAC Breda and demanded a move, which was rejected.
The club refused to listen to offers as they needed his goal-scoring services in the Premier League. His stand-off lasted until November when he realised he had no choice but to return to Forest.
The depth of antipathy at the club was reflected when his teammates refused to celebrate with him when scoring on his return. Instead they celebrated with teammate Scott Gemmill for assisting the goal.
Forest were relegated and he left that summer, Vitesse Arnhem purchasing him for £3.5 million.
‘GODFATHER’ JUST THE SPUR FOR BERBATOV
Moody Bulgarian striker Dimitar Berbatov tested the patience of the Tottenham Hotspur hierarchy and manager Juande Ramos as he looked to engineer a multi-million pound “dream” move to Manchester United at the beginning of the 2008/09 campaign.
He refused to play in the Premier League game against Sunderland and was threatened with demotion to the reserves.
Spurs complained to the Premier League about United’s ‘tapping up’ of their star striker but eventually sold him on September 1 for £30 million.
