Arsenal in training bust-up with David Luiz ‘hitting Dani Ceballos on the nose, knocking him to the floor and drawing blood before both players were sent home and forced to apologise’
- David Luiz took exception to a challenge from Dani Ceballos in Arsenal training
- The Brazilian defender reportedly struck Ceballos on the nose, drawing blood
- The Spanish midfielder rose to his feet and the pair had to be separated
- Mikel Arteta sent the players home from training and they have since apologised
- However, Ceballos has branded the report as ‘fake’ via his Twitter account
News of a fiery altercation at Arsenal training has emerged with David Luiz reportedly hitting team-mate Dani Ceballos in the face, drawing blood from the midfielder.
The Brazilian defender took exception to a tackle from the Spaniard at the end of a squad practice match last Friday, striking Ceballos on the nose and knocking him to the floor.
A report in The Athletic reveals that Ceballos quickly rose to his feet before both players were separated by staff and team-mates and the pair were sent home from training – however Ceballos has branded the report ‘fake’ on his Twitter account on Thursday evening.
A clash during Arsenal training between David Luiz (L) and Dani Ceballos (R) has been revealed
The pair were sent home from training last Friday and have since apologised to the group
But Ceballos brandished the report of the bust-up as ‘fake’ on his Twitter on Thursday night
Nevertheless, the report details that after three days off, the pair apologised to their team-mates for the altercation and training has resumed with no issue.
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta asked both Luiz, 33, and Ceballos, 24, to clear the air in the dressing room during training on Tuesday.
It is not the first time this season Ceballos, on loan from Real Madrid for the second season running, has been involved in a confrontation with one of his team-mates.
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta asked Luiz and Ceballos to clear the air at training on Tuesday
Ceballos was also involved in a bust-up with Eddie Nketiah on the first day of the new season
You don’t see this every day ¿¿
Dani Ceballos and Eddie Nketiah got into a heated exchange during a pre-match training routine ¿¿ pic.twitter.com/u1qMPuZ8Ux
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) September 12, 2020
Before their Premier League opener at Fulham, Ceballos faced up to fellow substitute Eddie Nketiah during a drill in the warm-up.
Nketiah has since admitted that ‘it is all love’ between himself and the 24-year-old midfielder.
Yet the new row came just five days after the Gunners’ shock 3-0 defeat at home to Aston Villa, in which Ceballos came on as a replacement but Luiz was an unused substitute.
Luiz and Ceballos moved to Arsenal last year, in a permanent deal and on loan respectively
The international break has presented problems of its own too for Arsenal, with midfielder Mohamed Elneny testing positive for coronavirus among a number of issues.
Willian travelled to Dubai whilst on break despite lockdown, while Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was forced to sleep on the airport floor during international duty with Gabon.
Arteta’s side currently sit 11th in the Premier League and face a tricky trip to Leeds United on Sunday after an opening to the season which has seen them lose four of their eight Premier League matches.
This week, Arteta has opened up about Mesut Ozil’s exclusion as well, claiming his decision to axe the German star has hurt him.
Arsenal boss Arteta ruthlessly axed Mesut Ozil from his domestic and European squads
Ozil, 32, who is under contract with Arsenal until June 2021, is the club’s highest earner on £350,000-per-week but has not played for Arteta’s side since March 7 – and has bene left out of the Premier League and Europa League squads.
‘I’m hurt because I don’t like any player in my squad not to have the possibility to participate, or to compete, for me it is really sad because I don’t think anybody deserves that,’ Arteta said in an interview with beIN SPORTS.
‘But at the end of the day I’m sitting here to make decisions, to make the decisions that, in my opinion, are the best for the football club. And this is what I have to do.’
