FOOTBALL: When Mind Games Go Mental

Whilst the verbal bear-baiting between Arsene, Fergie, Rafa and Jose is always an interesting diversion, their refined bitching pales in comparison to some of the other rivalries in world football.

In Paraguay for example, two leading figures in the game have indulged in an ongoing dispute that has spilled out of the genteel world of words and into a succession of brutal, ugly gestures. Dr Carlos de Pasotarore, president of Club Luitano and Dr Victor Gonzales-Gonzalez (left), his counterpart at Mericadio Xmas are locked in a fierce war of wills which dates back over ten years. We look back at some of the highlights…

FEBRUARY 1997 – Dr de Pasotarore (right) is humiliated two days before a match between the two sides when photographs appear in the partisan 'Viva Xmas!' newspaper, showing him blowing up an orphanage (below). Following an inquiry, it is revealed that the photos were doctored and that the Luitano manager was actually blowing up a toy factory.

JULY 2002 – Dr de Pasotarore is believed to be behind a stunt where fourteen leprosy-riddled prostitutes (the cheapest kind available, known in Paraguay as 'wafers') turn up at Dr Gonzales-Gonzalez' son's third birthday, drunk and intent on causing sexual mayhem. As a result, five people are shot dead.

MAY 2005 – Dr Gonzales-Gonzalez outrages Paraguay during a match between the two sides by filling his dugout with dwarves dressed as Dr de Pasotarore, replete with trademark white quiff. Two-thirds of the way through the game with the score poised at 1-1, he orders them to strip in the technical area before dousing them in pink paint and beating them with canes.

OCTOBER 2006 – Dr de Pasotarore is rushed into hospital to have his lungs drained in an emergency procedure. TV cameras are present and Dr Gonzales-Gonzalez guests as a studio pundit. His only contribution is continuous gales of laughter, and he has to be forcibly removed from the studio after attacking a naked life-sized model of his rival which had been set up on an operating table in the studio.