Manchester City's preparations for tomorrow's game at Arsenal have been disrupted by another angry confrontation on their training ground, with Emmanuel Adebayor and Kolo Touré being pulled apart in scenes that will raise further questions about the togetherness of Roberto Mancini's squad.
The two former Arsenal players squared up after clashing in what was supposed to be a non-contact practice match to warm up for the trip to London and the coming together of the Premier League's second- and third‑placed teams.
One witness reported the two players "losing it for a second with each other" before other team-mates jumped in to prevent it escalating. Touré and Adebayor have not got on for a while and after the players had calmed down, Mancini changed the sides so they were on the same team.
The flashpoint "ended swiftly enough", according to the witness, but photographs of the melee will fuel the perception that Mancini has assembled one of the more combustible squads in the top division. City say this is not the case and that these kinds of incidents happen at other clubs, but the frequency with which they have occurred this season has become an embarrassment behind the scenes at Eastlands.
It is only four weeks since Mario Balotelli was photographed lashing out at Jérôme Boateng after reacting badly to a challenge in another training-ground match. Mancini has said he likes his players to be spirited and competitive but he has also had to contend with Yaya Touré and James Milner having a heated exchange at half-time of the 3-0 defeat by Arsenal in October and another flashpoint involving Adebayor and Vincent Kompany during the 2-1 defeat at Wolverhampton Wanderers the following week.
Adebayor's relationship with several of his Arsenal team-mates, most notably Nicklas Bendtner and Robin van Persie, became frayed during his time at the Emirates, and his reputation has not been enhanced by a disruptive year at City in which he has also had at least two serious arguments with Mancini.
The manager was also involved in a dressing-room confrontation with Carlos Tevez at half-time of the Newcastle match in October, an argument that became so heated the other players and coaches thought the two could come to blows. Tevez's relationship with Mancini has been precarious at times, although both manager and player have had good words to say about one another recently.
Mancini is acutely aware of Tevez's worth to the team but does not have the same high regard for Adebayor and is looking to move him on as soon as Edin Dzeko's £27m from Wolfsburg is completed. Mancini confirmed today that the fee had been agreed and the deal is so far advanced now that Dzeko has applied to change his visa details, but there are still issues to be resolved about his salary.
Mancini was "confident" there would be a satisfactory conclusion for "a good player; all the teams in Europe want him". Málaga, backed by the financial power of the Qatari royal family, want to sign Adebayor on loan, with a view to a long-term deal. Real Madrid are monitoring the position.
Adebayor has missed the past month because of a foot injury but Mancini will be more concerned by the absence of David Silva and Balotelli for the Arsenal match and what promises to be a serious examination of City's aspirations to overhaul Manchester United at the top of the table. Silva will be missing because of the knee injury he suffered in the 1-0 defeat of Blackpool on Saturday and he is unlikely to be back for the FA Cup third-round tie at Leicester City on Sunday. Balotelli has intermittent swelling to his right knee, which was operated on because of a cartilage problem in September, and is also likely to miss the trip to Leicester.
"It's a big problem," Mancini said as he reflected on his possible team to face Arsenal, with Milner and Adam Johnson favourites to start in the wide positions.
After tipping Chelsea to win the league since the start of the season, Mancini's thinking has changed in light of the recent problems at Stamford Bridge and he said Carlo Ancelotti's team now had only "a small chance" after slumping to fifth position. "They have a problem at this moment as Carlo has had a few important players injured. When you have two or three big players injured for two months or so, it is difficult."