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Football spats
Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Francesco Totti… nine of the worst spitting incidents in football after Jamie Carragher row
Carragher set to be sacked by Sky Sports after spitting on 14-year-old girl on Saturday afternoon
JAMIE CARRAGHER risks being sacked from his Sky Sports punditry role after spitting on a 14-year-old girl at the weekend.
The former Liverpool man, 40, pulled up next to a car in his Range Rover in heavy traffic following the Reds' 2-1 loss to Manchester United.
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Video then shows him spitting at the girl after her dad yelled: “Unlucky Jamie lad — 2-1!”
With fans calling for Carragher to be sacked from his Sky Sports role - after being axed from his job on Danish television - we take a look at some of the worst spitting incidents in football.
Check out nine other horrific encounters, below...
1. FRANK RIJKAARD - Holland vs Germany, 1990
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ARGUABLY the most infamous "spat" of them all, Rijkaard and Rudi Voller went toe-to-toe at the World Cup in Italy.
A ferocious challenge by Rijkaard on Voller - followed by a quick spit - set the tone... only for Voller to complain and see yellow.
CARRA GONER Jamie Carragher should be sacked by Sky Sports for spitting on 14-year-old girl, according to football fans
Voller then hacked Dutch goalkeeper Hans van Breukelen - with Rijkaard once again taking exception.
Both Rijkaard and Voller were sent off in the subsequent fracas... before the Dutchman aimed another mouthful at his German enemy, nestling right in his mullet.
2. PATRICK VIEIRA - West Ham vs Arsenal, 1999
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FAMOUS Arsenal hardman Vieira was never far from the action during his long career - getting into a hatful of scrapes during his days in North London.
But one game - against West Ham in 1999 - will be up there as one of his worst.
After being sent-off in the clash, Vieira, with nothing to lose, aimed a gobful of spit at Neil Ruddock, only to be held back by Gilles Grimandi.
The Frenchman was handed a six-match ban for the horrid stunt and fined £30,000.
3. EL HADJI-DIOUF - Celtic vs Liverpool, 2003
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SENEGAL'S Diouf at one point was more famous for his spitting exploits than his football.
In just one of his shameful incidents, the then-Liverpool forward spat at a Celtic fan during a Uefa Cup quarter-final clash in 2003.
He was fined by his club and by Glasgow Sheriff Court for the incident - but it hardly deterred him.
Diouf spat at Portsmouth's Arjen de Zeeuw just a year later - with countless allegations of spitting to follow right up until his retirement.
The Senegalese footballer was also accused of spitting at a West Ham fan in 2002, an 11-year-old Middlesbrough supporter while at Bolton in 2004 and in 2012 against Blackpool while on the books of Leeds, just to scratch the surface.
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4. FRANCESCO TOTTI - Italy vs Denmark, 2004
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EURO 2004 saw two massive spit incidents, with Totti's the worst of the pair.
The Italian aimed a dirty protest in the direction of Christian Poulsen - and was suspended for three games just two days later.
Uefa found Totti guilty of "gross unsporting conduct".
At the same tournament Switzerland's Alexander Frei was handed the exact same punishment for spitting at Steven Gerrard, as England stormed to a 3-0 win.
5. CRISTIANO RONALDO - Derby vs Man United, 2007
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THE FA Cup clash was not much of a contest in footballing terms, as United strolled to a 4-1 win.
But all eyes were locked on Ronaldo and Robbie Savage during the game, with the pair involved in a host of heated incidents.
At one point, following a tackle, Ronaldo was on his knees with Savage clutching the Portuguese star's shirt.
The now-Real Madrid man then spat in the direction of the Welshman... but it ultimately came to nothing.
6. LIONEL MESSI - Malaga vs Barcelona, 2008
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CERTAINLY not the player you'd expect to be involved in something negative on the pitch, but Messi is another to make our "top spats" list.
During a clash with Malaga a decade ago, the Barcelona star spat on the back of Duda's shirt after the latest in a long line of heavy tackles.
After the game, a 4-1 win for Barca, then-boss Pep Guardiola said: "It is not good that these things happen. We will try to avoid this type of incident."
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7. ANTOLIN ALCARAZ - Wolves vs Wigan, 2011
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PLAYERS from both Wolves and Wigan were involved in a massive brawl during their 2011 clash.
It was all sparked by Alcaraz too, after he spat at Richard Stearman.
Then-Wolves boss Mick McCarthy slammed the incident, saying: "If it has been shown, that is unacceptable behaviour.
"I only had it happen to me once and the player didn't come too close to me for a long time."
8. PAPISS CISSE & JONNY EVANS - Newcastle vs Man United, 2014
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FOUR years ago, during a heated clash between Newcastle and Man United, Cisse appeared to stamp on Evans.
The players squared up - with both Cisse and Evans accusing the other of spitting.
Then-United boss Louis van Gaal moved quickly to defend Evans, saying: "I didn't see that from the bench, it was too far away to see a spitting incident so I can't judge that.
"I can't imagine that from Evans though. He's a very modest person, I can't imagine he would do that. I've not been made aware of the incident."
9. ARTHUR MASUAKU - Wigan vs West Ham, 2018
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MOST recently, West Ham's Masuaku was seen to spit at Wigan's Nick Powell in the FA Cup clash in January.
The Hammers star reacted in a vile manner following a crunching tackle from the Wigan midfielder - aiming a wad of spit at Powell.
The referee didn't need telling twice after the unsavoury incident, reaching straight for the red card.
Arthur Masuaku spits at Nick Powell and is sent off during West Ham’s FA Cup clash against Wigan
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