SOCCER: Manchester United's Cristiano Ronaldo and Middlesbrough captain Emanuel Pogatetz reportedly had to be separated in the tunnel as tempers threatened to boil over when the two teams made their way down the Old Trafford at half-time during night's game.

After Pogatetz grappled Ronaldo to the ground as the two players lined up for an injury-time corner, the Portuguese pleaded to referee Martin Atkinson for a penalty with a finger-wagging rebuke. His complaints then carried on at the interval with the two players reportedly coming close to blows.

"The players squared up to each other and went forehead to forehead, with witnesses saying that the squabble and shouting continued into the players' tunnel, where a member of Middlesbrough's backroom staff also railed at Ronaldo," according to The Timesin London.

"It seemed as though Pogatetz grabbed him around the neck,'' said Alex Ferguson. "That happens in penalty boxes all the time. We've had referees coming to meet the players a couple of years ago and they said it would be stamped out with one warning and then a red card. But nothing ever happens."

A spat involving Ronaldo, however, does seem to be an increasingly common occurrence. In recent weeks he has kicked out at both Tottenham's Michael Dawson and Stoke's Andy Wilkinson after both players tackled him.