Kaka Massimo Oddo AC Milan 2007

'Gattuso took a punch to the face!' - Oddo reveals details about Ibrahimovic and Onyewu fight

Massimo Oddo has revealed how Gennaro Gattuso accidentally bore the brunt of a fight between team-mates on the training ground at AC Milan.

Former Italy international right-back Oddo joined Milan in 2007 and was part of their Champions League winning squad later that year, and also helped them to their most recent Serie A title in 2011 before spending a season on loan at Lecce ahead of retirement.

Aside from success on the pitch, Oddo has fond memories of the personalities of his team-mates, remembering several moments of training ground shenanigans that revealed the human side of some of the modern heroes of Milan.

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One incident saw striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic and defender Oguchi Onyewu square up - a battle of the giants between the 6' 5" striker and the 6' 4" American centre-back - into which combative midfielder Gattuso, standing at only 5' 10", tried to play peacemaker, only to get caught up in the violence.

Speaking to Sky Sport Italia, Oddo said: "They came to blows, but nothing excessive. Gattuso tried to divide them and took a very strong punch to the face."

The fight, in November 2010, drew international headlines after Onyewu squared up to Ibrahimovic after the Swedish striker made a reckless tackle on the defender, grabbing him by the throat, causing the session to be abandoned.

According to Oddo this was just an example of the high jinks and intense moments which came around often during his time at Milan, usually revolving around Italian international midfielder Gattuso.

Remembering a particularly painful moment at the hands of the future Milan manager and now Napoli boss, Oddo said: "Now I laugh, but before I cried because Rino one day stuck a fork in my leg. 

“Sitting at that table was me, [Alessandro] Nesta, [Massimo] Ambrosini, [Andrea] Pirlo, Gattuso, [Filippo] Inzaghi and [Christian] Abbiati. He always laughed and joked, except before the matches."

Oddo joined Milan in January 2007 from Lazio, and a few months later started the Champions League final as his new club defeated Liverpool 2-1 to avenge their loss in Istanbul two years earlier.

He went on to make 56 appearances for the San Siro club, scoring twice.

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