From farting to scoring against Italy - weird reasons players have been sacked

Managers find themselves fired from their posts on a regular basis but player power is a whole different kettle of fish.

Teams at any level have the power to sack players that bring the club's reputation into disrepute, but plenty of footballers have survived their share of controversy.

In extreme circumstances, Mamadou Sakho left Montpellier after a physical altercation with his head coach, while Patrice Evra's Marseille contract was infamously ripped up in 2017 for fighting fans.

A lot of the time, players are instead just frozen out until they can either be sold or their contract expires if the club can't reach an agreement on their termination.

However, occasionally stars are given the can for the strangest reasons - players who committed violence, drug offences or otherwise gross misconduct will not be included.

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Marcelo

Brazilian defender Marcelo (not that one) reportedly had his contract terminated by Lyon for farting in the dressing room and laughing about it.

The Ligue 1 club's then-sporting director Juninho kicked up a stink of his own when he found out.

Lyon had a season to forget in 2021/22, and one of their lowest points came with a 3-0 defeat to Angers where Marcelo was particularly poor.

The 36-year-old scored an own-goal in the loss, and was later dropped to the reserve side for 'inappropriate behaviour'.

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That turned out to be a fart, which proved to be the last straw for Lyon, who terminated Marcelo's contract and left him to join Bordeaux in January 2022.

However, he became a free agent following the club's relegation months later and made the move to Australian club Western Sydney Wanderers.

Jeffrey de Visscher

The former Aberdeen player was said to have been sacked by FC Emmen for defecating in public during a drunken night out.

De Visscher was caught by police squatting beside his car after nature called but claimed a friend had been behind the wheel, as per the Metro.

Nevertheless, he was sacked but the man himself insisted the number one reason was a lack of playing time and not the number two reason.

He told Voetbal International magazine: "There are stories doing the rounds, but it's utter rubbish. I had nothing to do with it.

"I was released from my contract at Emmen because there were no more chances for me."

Ahn Jung Hwan

The former South Korea international paid a heavy price for scoring a golden goal against Italy at the 2002 World Cup.

Ahn's 117th-minute strike sent his country into the quarterfinals for the first, and only time in their history, at the expense of the Azzurri.

Not that the attacker had much time to celebrate, having woken up the next morning to find his contract terminated by Serie A club Perugia.

Then-club chairman Luciano Gaucci said: "I have no intention of paying a salary to someone who has ruined Italian soccer."

Lee Clark

Even before the age of social media and every fan owning a smart phone, the ex-midfielder was never getting away with this one...

Clark, a lifelong Toon fan and former Newcastle player, made the move to fierce rivals Sunderland in 1997 but kept his boyhood club in his heart.

And when the Magpies reached the FA Cup final two years later, Clark was spotted among supporters wearing a T-shirt reading 'Sad Mackem B*******'.

He never played for Sunderland again, and his then-manager Peter Reid later wrote: "As soon as pictures of him started to appear in the media it was obvious to everyone at Sunderland, particularly me, that his time with us would have to be brought to an abrupt end.

"When I next saw him I told him he had to go, it was as simple as that. Our fans wanted him out and there was no way back."

Adil Rami

Marseille were said to have sacked the defender after he went mud wrestling on a reality TV show despite telling the club he was injured.

The Frenchman reportedly told the Ligue 1 club he had to skip a session in 2019 before appearing on Fort Boyard.

Rami was later filmed jumping around and grappling with fellow contestants on the TV show.

That proved to be the final straw for the World Cup winner following a host of sporadic behaviour following a high-profile split with ex-Playboy model Pamela Anderson.

Michael Keane

"He will go a long way in the game. Another Roy Keane? I hope so."

That was the verdict of then-Preston North End manager David Moyes after Keane scored on his full debut against Wimbledon in 2001.

Seven years later, Keane was sacked by St Patrick's Athletic for allegedly being overweight and has never played professionally since.

The following month it was ruled the club were wrong to dismiss him but the retired midfielder opted to do his coaching badges instead of return.

"St Patrick's Athletic did everything to break me," Keane told the Irish Independent.

"It was a horrible time in my life, before and after they sacked me, but I was determined to clear my name."

Sergi Guardiola

Not every footballer with the surname Guardiola manages to carve out a storied career at Barcelona.

Manchester City boss Pep spent over two decades at the Nou Camp as both player and later manager - his namesake Sergi lasted just hours.

In 2015, the younger Guardiola - no relation - was unveiled as Barcelona B's new signing but had been sacked by the evening after tweets were discovered praising Real Madrid and insulting Catalonia.

He told Spanish radio station Cope: "I know I made a mistake. I apologise to Catalonia and Barcelona. I understand the decision, I'd do the same.

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"I want to make clear I didn't write those tweets. A friend took my phone and did it. It's a misunderstanding. The tweets are from 2013, a joke from a friend, I didn't even know the tweets existed.

"Barcelona have treated me very well. I understand their decision. Now I'm going home, we'll see what happens."