Wayne Bridge has shared an account of an “unbelievable” physical altercation between two of his former Chelsea colleagues.
Bridge, aged 44, a former full-back, was a Chelsea player from 2003 to 2006.
Bridge achieved consecutive league titles with Chelsea, playing alongside prominent figures such as Frank Lampard, Didier Drogba, and John Terry.
Despite the team’s success, it is reported that two less successful Chelsea signings of that era were involved in a significant dressing room conflict.
During an appearance on The Dressing Room podcast with ex-teammates Joe Cole and Carlton Cole, Bridge revealed details of the incident.
He stated, “The most intense fight I witnessed was between Shevchenko and Tal Ben Haim.”
“Tal was known for his aggressive tackles. There were a couple of clashes between them, and Sheva initially warned him. But Tal continued with his robust play.”
“Eventually, they confronted each other directly. Then Shevchenko unleashed a combination of punches – a jab, cross, hook, cross. It was rapid, ‘bang, bang, bang, bang! Game over.’ It was decisive.”
“Afterwards, everyone just moved on. Tal had to accept it and put aside his pride. And simply avoid Shevchenko in the future!”
Shevchenko, now 48, joined Chelsea from AC Milan in 2006 for £30.8million.
Despite his reputation, Shevchenko struggled to find his form in the Premier League, scoring 22 goals in 77 appearances for Chelsea over two seasons.
Ben Haim, on the other hand, never became a consistent starter for Chelsea after his free transfer in 2007.
Following only 23 appearances for Chelsea, he transferred to Manchester City just a year after his arrival.
Bridge is familiar with combat sports himself.
In January, he agreed to a boxing match against YouTuber KSI, scheduled for March 29.
However, Bridge later withdrew from the fight after KSI made disrespectful remarks about Bridge’s former partner Vanessa Perroncel and her alleged affair with John Terry.
