According to a report from Bild (as captured by @iMiaSanMia), Real Madrid center-back Antonio Rüdiger and Borussia Dortmund striker Niclas Füllkrug had a physical altercation and nearly came to blows during practice with the national team.
This is not the first time Rüdiger has gotten into a near-scuffle with a teammate during Germany’s training camp. As you might remember, Rüdiger and Joshua Kimmich got heated with each other back in 2018 (the same day that Leroy Sané accidentally elbowed Julian Draxler in the face). This time, there was a physical exchange during play that started to escalate before being broken up assistant coach Sandro Wagner:
There was a heated altercation between Niclas Füllkrug and Antonio Rüdiger in today’s session. During a training game, both were direct opponents. Rüdiger kept holding the striker, pulling him down. After a strong tackle, Füllkrug lied on the ground, cursing at Rüdiger and… pic.twitter.com/Ue1qBkSqdB
— Bayern & Germany (@iMiaSanMia) June 10, 2024
There was a heated altercation between Niclas Füllkrug and Antonio Rüdiger in today’s session. During a training game, both were direct opponents. Rüdiger kept holding the striker, pulling him down. After a strong tackle, Füllkrug lied on the ground, cursing at Rüdiger and shouting angrily at set piece coach Mads Buttgereit: ‘Blow the whistle already’ – Füllkrug stood up and went towards Rüdiger, they both pushed each other and almost came to blows.
Assistant coach Sandro Wagner had to step in and separate them. Wagner went to Rüdiger and tried to calm him down. Füllkrug stomped past them angrily. Rüdiger then didn’t go back with the team and went for runs with the fitness coach to calm down.
BFW Fight Analysis
(Does best tribute voice to the late, great former HBO boxing commentator — Harold Lederman)
“Okay Jim, what we have here is something that Rüdiger is doing what he does. getting really handsy and physical with his opponent. Sometimes he pushes it too far, Jim, and really gets under the other player’s skin. This time it was Füllkrug, Jim, and he’s not the kind of guy to back down from a challenge. The problem is that Füllkrug is nursing a knee injury and was probably not too thrilled to have a teammate gets overly physical with him. In the end, Jim, it was much ado about nothing, as the guy who looks like the mask from V for Vendetta broke it up before anyone got hurt. I scored it a 10-10 round, Jim…no advantage to either guy.”
Rüdiger has a reputation as someone not to be trifled with, while Füllkrug is not someone who has been known to back down from anyone. Bild (via @iMiaSanMia) is reporting that the BVB striker has been battling a knee injury since camp opened and that probably escalated things a bit as the Füllkrug was probably being protective of the issue:
Niclas Füllkrug is carrying knee problems and can’t play a full 90 minutes at the moment. That’s one of the reasons he’s only planned as a substitute to come off the bench at the Euros – with Kai Havertz set to start upfront.
In the end, no one threw a punch, which could have made things go sideways in a hurry.
Looking for some thoughts and analysis on Bayern Munich’s pursuit of João Palhinha, how he might fit in the squad, and what the roster fallout might look like? Then check out our latest Bavarian Podcast Works Show, where we also hit on why Sky Sport’s report on six big player sales might not be so far offbase and why the German national team did not give fans a ton of confidence after the friendlies against Ukraine and Greece. You can get the podcast on Spotify or below: