Photo by ISIphotos.com
By AVI CREDITOR
In one of the odder personnel moves of the season, United States midfielder Jermaine Jones and two other players have been sent down to the Schalke reserves in Germany's fourth division by coach Felix Magath.
Magath has reportedly been upset with Jones' attitude during matches. He pulled the midfielder off at halftime of Schalke's 5-0 loss to Kaiserslautern over the weekend. Despite advancing to the knockout stage of the UEFA Champions League, Schalke is currently in 15th place in the Bundesliga with just 13 points through 14 matches.
This isn't the first incident this year involving a spat between Jones and Magath. The U.S. international was reportedly among a contingent of players caught partying until 4 a.m. a couple of days before a German Cup match in October.
Hans Sarpei and Alexander Baumjohann were demoted to the reserves along with Jones. It's unclear how long they will be kept away from the first team.
Here are a few more stories to carry you through your Tuesday:
BBC'S PANORAMA REPORT
In the event that you have yet to see BBC's Panorama episode regarding corruption in FIFA, take a look:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tjlZw9NGSlU&w=440&h=360]
Part Two:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-wQy4eT4M9I&w=440&h=360]
VAN DER VAART COULD MISS MONTH
Tottenham midfielder Rafael Van der Vaart said he could miss up to a month of action with a nagging injury to his hamstring, which he fears is torn.
Van der Vaart had to be subbed off after just 11 minutes of Spurs' come-from-behind victory over Liverpool over the weekend. Should he face an extended period of time on the sideline, he would miss Tottenham's final UEFA Champions League group stage match in addition to a key league fixture against Chelsea, among other games.
SERIE A STRIKE DATE SET
The Serie A Players' Union has threatened to strike ahead of the games scheduled to be played on Dec. 11 and 12 as the drawn-out conversations between players and league haven't yielded a resolution.
The conflict over the collective bargaining agreement goes back to September, when another threatened strike was averted. There is still a chance that this threat goes unfounded as well, assuming progress is made in the next two weeks.
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Are you worried about Jones' attitude, or do you think this has more to do with the manager? Do you hope Jones transfers elsewhere in January? What are your reactions to the Panorama episode? Do you think Tottenham can continue its run of form without Van der Vaart? Can you see the Serie A players actually going through with their threat to strike?
Share your thoughts below.