JOE GOMEZ has spoken of his incredible canteen bust-up with Raheem Sterling for the first time – and admitted it changed him as a person.
The Liverpool centre-back, 22, was left with a scar underneath his right eye after the Man City star put him in a headlock last November.
Gomez has opened up for the first time on the clash he had with Sterling which led to scarring under his eyeCredit: PA:Press Association
Gomez shows the effects of the bust-up with SterlingCredit: Reuters
They clashed while on England duty after rowing in a a Premier League game the weekend before.
And Gomez, who suffered cuts after being scratched by Sterling’s jewellery, was booed in the subsequent Three Lions clash against Montenegro.
The pair have since made up, but in an interview with The Athletic, Gomez explained how the incident led to a change in his personality.
Speaking of the clash and its repercussions, he said: “If anything it has made me a bit more stand-offish.
“But in terms of the actual situation (with Sterling), what happened happened.
“We spoke. It was done. As a team it was done. So in my head it was done.
“It was just then that the game happened with the reception.”
Gomez was also asked about the prospect of being booed again by fans for next month’s friendlies against Italy and Denmark.
Sterling and Gomez put on a brave face when they returned to England training togetherCredit: Reuters
He said: “I haven’t really processed it.
“With what happened brings experience.
“I went out to train and I knew that the first session after it came out publicly, eyes were going to be on me.
“I was never used to that before. So, good or bad, it was an experience.”
Warring Sterling and Gomez were pulled apart by their fellow Three Lions stars as food was sent flying from the tables in the melee at St George’s Park.
Anfield skipper Jordan Henderson acted as peacemaker and spoke to Sterling – who admitted in an apology that “emotions got the better of me” – and Gomez over the phone about the incident.
Sterling was dropped for the game against Montenegro as a consequence of the bust-up.
SunSport told you the fight began after Gomez offered a handshake and Sterling asked, “Still the big man?” in reference to their Premier League showdown the weekend before.
Gomez and Sterling squared up to each other in the dying minutes of Liverpool’s 3-1 win.
Inside Raheem Sterling and Joe Gomez’s England canteen chaos with food flying, headlock bust-up and ‘big man’ jibes
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
