Tottenham Hotspur captain Son Heung-min reportedly dislocated a finger in a row over table tennis at South Korea's Asian Cup camp in Qatar.
The Taegeuk Warriors were knocked out in the semi-final at the hands of tournament surprise package Jordan, and during this game Son was wearing a bandage on his right hand.
The Daily Mail is reporting, via South Korean news agency Yonhap, that the injury stemmed from a bust-up on the eve of the game, when national team skipper Son took issue with some younger players rushing off to play table tennis after a meal, instead of bonding as a group.
Son is alleged to have grabbed Paris Saint-Germain starlet Lee Kang-In, who in turn tried to punch the captain. The players were pulled apart and the Korea Football Association now confirmed that an incident took place.
"It happened when some young players went up to play table tennis, and Son Heung-min and other older players took issue with it,' an official said. 'The players exchanged a few words and Son hurt his finger in the process," the official added.
South Korea's Asian Cup troubles
The alleged incident is another sour note to end a tumultuous Asian Cup campaign for former Spurs striker Jurgen Klinsmann and his side.
As one of the pre-tournament favourites, South Korea entered the competition looking to be crowned continental champions for the first time since 1960. Things started well with a 3-1 win over Bahrain in the opening group game, before South Korea needed late goals to secure draws against both Jordan and Malaysia.
These results led to them qualifying for the knockout stage as group runners-up but this wasn't enough to satisfy fans and media back home, as scrutiny on Klinsmann's tactics intensified.
South Korea's penchant for late rescue-jobs continued into the knockout stage, as injury-time equalisers set them up for penalty shootout and extra time successes against Saudi Arabia and Australia respectively.
However, Jordan in the semifinal proved a task too far, leading to Son tearfully apologising to his nation for failing to take the trophy home.
