Florentin Pogba clashes with teammates after walking off pitch

Florentin Pogba clashed with Genclerbirligi teammates after walking out of their Turkish Super Lig defeat to Antalyaspor on Sunday.

Pogba, the older brother of Manchester United's Paul, appeared to pick up a slight injury in the 88th minute and limped off the pitch.

But Genclerbirligi had already made all three substitutions, and his teammates objected to Pogba leaving them down to 10 men as they chased an equaliser.

Some yelled at him as he took off his shirt and crossed the touchline, while others confronted him and there was pushing and shoving before club staff intervened.

Turkish media reports alleged that the former Saint-Etienne defender had been attacked by teammates in the dressing room after a 1-0 defeat that leaves the club in serious danger of relegation.

Pogba told L'Equipe he did not "abandon the team" and the injury had forced him off.

"No, I wasn't at all assaulted physically," the 27-year-old said. "Verbally, some might have shouted, but I don't know what they said in Turkish. I went off calmly.

"I went off because I was injured and I couldn't continue. I knew the three substitutions had been made. We were trailing, and I kicked the ball out to be able to go off and not waste time.

"It's true I should have told the coach beforehand, I must apologise for that. A teammate asked me what was wrong, people started shouting, but I quite simply couldn't finish the match.

"I was a little annoyed by the way the game had gone. We missed a lot of chances. There was stress and nervousness. I was annoyed to have been injured.

"It's true that there was a moment when there were a lot of people around me, I was a little hot-headed.

"But it's a misunderstanding, not me abandoning them. I'm not like that. It wasn't my goal to abandon the team. I'm not someone who gives in, regardless of the circumstances."

L'Equipe reported that Pogba underwent an MRI scan on Monday that revealed he had suffered a minor thigh strain.

Information from ESPN FC's France correspondent Ian Holyman was used in this report.