John Arne Riise Recalls Bust-Up With Golf Club-Wielding Craig Bellamy In New, Revealing Interview
John Arne Riise has recalled the brutal bust-up with a golf club-wielding Craig Bellamy in a new and revealing interview.
By now you should know the infamous clash between former Liverpool players Riise and Bellamy during a mid-season break in the Algarve ahead of their Champions League game against Barcelona.
Bellamy taunted Riise whilst the squad were taking part in Karaoke as things quickly turned sour.
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The Welshman ordered the Norwegian to sing, but his refusal prompted an angry and expletive outburst.
Following the Karaoke session, Bellamy knocked on Riise's hotel room - wielding a golf club.
The 41-year-old has re-told the story on the Filthy Fellas podcast and it makes for an incredible listen.
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Riise and Bellamy's former teammate Fabio Aurelio shared his take on the incident in Spain, revealing how furious then-manager Rafael Benitez was following the fight.
"Well, there's that story of Bellamy and John Arne Riise in the Algarve," he told FourFourTwo.
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"It was bizarre, actually. Bellamy lost his mind and went to Riise's room to hit him with a golf club! We were relaxing in Portugal before a Champions League game against Barcelona and then the police showed up at our hotel.
"Benitez was going crazy, but luckily it didn't escalate further.
"We played Barca and Bellamy scored a goal. The funny thing is that Riise took part in the build-up to the goal. Bellamy celebrated by swinging an imaginary golf club.
"The fans didn't know why he was doing that celebration, but the players did."
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Liverpool went onto knock Barca out of the Champions League, but it's Bellamy's golf-inspired celebration that will be remembered from their juggernaut European meeting.
Topics: Craig Bellamy, Liverpool, Football
Nasir Jabbar