Beattie and Pulis in Christmas showdown

Stoke City are refusing to comment after newspaper reports said that Tony Pulis and James Beattie came to blows after Saturday's defeat at Arsenal.

The row appears to have come about after Pulis demanded that the players report for normal training today, despite an earlier agreement that they could have the day off so that they could have a Christmas party in London last night.

The unconfirmed reports say that both traded blows after Beattie was appointed spokesman for the rest of the team amid disquiet at the news.

James Beattie was not training with the rest of the squad at Clayton Woods today, but was said to be at the gym in the Britannia Stadium trying to shake off his injury niggles. If any of this is true, given TP's strict discipline regime, Beatts may find himself in deep, deep water.

It's not clear if the party went ahead last night, but if it did it must have been a very sober affair. It's also not clear why (again if the reports are true) TP decided to go back on a promise to let them off today's normal training schedule unless it was a simple case of a misunderstanding.

I'm afraid to say that there would seem to be more to come out here.

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