Barcelona coach Frank Rijkaard and the club's sporting director, Txiki Begiristain, will today decide what action to take against Samuel Eto'o after the striker sparked a crisis at the Nou Camp a week before the crucial Champions League tie against Liverpool.

Eto'o last night followed up his refusal to go on as a late substitute against Racing Santander on Sunday by launching an astonishing and thinly-veiled attack on Rijkaard and his team-mate Ronaldinho. He also blew the lid on the profound divisions within the squad when he claimed that Barcelona was a club where there are "two sides at war". It is a war in which Eto'o and Ronaldinho, Barca's biggest stars, find themselves on opposing sides.

The Cameroonian striker, who has been out of action with a knee-ligament injury since September, was due to make a substitute appearance against Racing as he continues his rehabilitation.

But, having warmed up for over 15 minutes, he returned to the bench with seven minutes left, furious that he had been offered so little time on the pitch.

Asked during the post-match press conference why Eto'o did not make an appearance, Rijkaard answered simply: "He decided not to play."

Ronaldinho, meanwhile, implored the Cameroonian to "think of the team".

The following day, Eto'o avoided both men when he decided to train alone in the gym and last night he hit back with a vengeance.

"Anyone who comes out in the press room and says that I refused to play is a bad person," Eto'o snapped, clearly referring to Rijkaard, with whom his relationship has long been strained. "I have always fulfilled my obligations with my team-mates. They can say whatever they want, but I can hold my head up high.

"Rijkaard said what he said. It's up to him to explain that. I don't have to give any explanations to anyone except the club - if they ask for them," he added. "He should think about the fact that I always go out and train with my team-mates, even if I have injuries and knocks."

The "unlike Ronaldinho", whose absenteeism is legendary, went unsaid as Eto'o also responded to the Brazilian's post-match comments. "If a team-mate says I should be thinking about the group, he's the one that should think about the group," said Eto'o. "That's the only thing that annoyed me."

Eto'o also accused the former vice-president, Sandro Rosell, of fostering a civil war at the club which has divided the dressingroom. Rosell was forced to leave Barcelona after his relationship with the president, Joan Laporta, collapsed, but he maintains a close relationship with a number of players, especially the Brazilians.

"(There is) a war with two sides," said Eto'o. "It is not my war but I am the one taking all the hits. (If Rosell has anything to say to me) he should have the balls to say so to my face; he never said anything to me when he was my boss.

"He didn't even say hello to me and now he is attacking me from behind my back. That's the behaviour of a bad person."

And if Barcelona were already reeling last night, the threat of even more serious revelations hung heavy in the air.

"If I come out and talk, you'll see what happens," Eto'o warned.