Salah vs Slot and five more sporting spats

Liverpool FC icon Mo Salah's outburst over the weekend has sent shockwaves through the Anfield dressing room. Egypt star Salah claimed in an explosive interview with the press that he's been "thrown under the bus" by the club and that his relationship with manager Arne Slot has "broken down".

Salah's future at the club is now in doubt, with an exit in the January transfer window looking ever more likely. Slot has responded by dropping Salah from the squad who've travelled to face Inter Milan in the UEFA Champions League.

Salah's outburst against Slot is just the latest in a line of spats in the world of sport. We've taken a look at some of the other times that sports stars have had a major falling out with each other.

Mary Earps comments about Sarina Wiegman

Celebrity autobiographies are often used to dish the dirt – after all, controversy sells books. But when heroic Lioness goalkeeper Mary Earps released her autobiography earlier this year, she probably didn't expect the backlash that followed.

In the book, Earps claims she told Lionesses boss Sarina Wiegman that she was rewarding "bad behaviour" after the England manager recalled keeper Hannah Hampton to the squad, despite her previously being dropped for being "disruptive and unreliable".

Wiegman responded to the claims, stating that she "picks teams to win", Wiegman continued: "We have two incredible goalkeepers in the goalkeeper group…And in the end, I made the decision to the one I came to."

Earps told the BBC that she had: "Not written this book to tear anyone down in any shape or form. That is not who I am as a person."

Lewis Hamilton vs Nico Rosberg – The Silver War

British Formula 1 legend Lewis Hamilton and former driver Nico Rosberg were teenage friends, regularly sharing hotel rooms together whilst on the karting circuit in the early 2000s.

In the 2014 season the two Mercedes team mates were battling for the World Drivers' Championship, when, during the Belgian Grand Prix their two cars collided, with Hamilton announcing on the team radio that "Nico just hit me." Hamilton later said: "We had a meeting about it and he basically said he did it on purpose. He said he could have avoided it, but he didn't want to. He basically said, 'I did it to prove a point'." Hamilton went on to win the Championship, with Rosberg finishing second.

The two would continue to be fierce rivals over the next two seasons, clashing several times in a rivalry that became known as The Silver War. Hamilton won the title again in 2015, before Rosberg won in 2016.

Rosberg would announce his shock retirement from the sport just five days after winning his first, and only, World Drivers' Championship, stating that he had reached the peak of his career.

Hamilton and Rosberg have since made up, and Hamilton sends Christmas presents to Nico's daughters each year.

McEnroe vs Borg – Fire vs Ice

The on-court rivalry between tennis stars John McEnroe and Björn Borg became one of the most fearsome in sport, but despite the media often playing on the intense competition between them, the pair actually had a mutual respect for each other. Borg said of McEnroe: “We were rivals on the court, yes, but off the court we always had mutual respect. I never hated John." McEnroe has also said in interviews after his retirement that: "We pushed each other to the absolute limit, but I never hated him."

Described as 'fire and ice' for their contrasting personalities, the pair played 14 career head-to-head matches, ending level with seven wins each. They met in two Wimbledon finals, each of which Borg won, whilst McEnroe won their two US Open final meetings.

Like the Borg/McEnroe rivalry, whenever you see something about a feud in the media, it's important to check both sides of the story, and gather all the evidence to verify whether or not what you've seen is the truth.

David Beckham vs Alex Ferguson – Hairdryer Treatment

Team talks from a football manager can often get very heated and former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson was one man who was renowned for his passionate, if not slightly angry, tactical talks.

Known as 'the hairdryer treatment', Feguson would shout at players with such force that it was like having a hairdryer in their faces. Football icon David Beckham once said: "The fear of getting the hairdryer was the reason why we all played so well. He was a manager you wanted to do well for."

However, Beckham was on the hot end of the hairdryer in 2003, following United's loss to Arsenal in the FA Cup. Sir Alex became so angry that he kicked a football boot at Beckham. Ferguson said in his autobiography: "He (Beckham) was about 12 feet from me. Between us lay a row of boots. David swore. I moved towards him, and as I approached I kicked a boot. It hit him right above the eye.'"

The relationship between the two United legends broke down and Beckham was sold to Real Madrid a few months later.

Vince McMahon vs Bret Hart – The Montreal Screwjob

Back in 1997 during the 'Monday Night Wars' – when the then WWF and WCW wrestling promotions were locked in a ratings battle between their two flagship shows, Raw and Nitro – it wasn't uncommon for wrestlers to jump ship and move to the rival company. But when WWF Champion, Bret 'The Hitman' Hart decided to move to WCW it was agreed that he would have to loose the championship belt, as the results in professional wrestling are scripted.

Bret told the then WWF Chairman Vince McMahon that he didn't want to loose the belt at Survivor Series, in his hometown of Montreal in Canada. The pair agreed that the match would end in disqualification, meaning the title would not swap hands, and Bret would loose the title at a later date.

However, during the match, whilst Bret was locked in his own submission move known as The Sharpshooter, Vince McMahon, who was at the ringside, ordered the timekeeper to ring the bell, signalling the end of the match. Despite this not being the agreed finish, the match ended with Shawn Michaels as the new champion.

Bret was furious, spitting at McMahon and writing the letters WCW in the air with his fingers. Bret and Vince got into an argument backstage which ended when Bret punched Vince and knocked him out. Bret left WWF and joined rival promotion WCW a month later.

If, like in our sporting star's stories, you and a friend have fallen out recently, then there are plenty of tips about how to repair your relationship over on Bitesize Study Support.

This article was published in December 2025.