Roberto De Zerbi and Cristian Stellini involved bust-up pre-game - and both later sent off

Roberto De Zerbi and Cristian Stellini were involved in a fiery bust-up prior to Tottenham Hotspur vs Brighton and Hove Albion.

On Saturday afternoon, the Seagulls arrived at the Tottenham Hotspur stadium looking to close the gap between themselves and Spurs.

Both teams are fighting for a spot in the Premier League’s top four and the action was already heated before the match even kicked off.

As Stellini and De Zerbi shook hands ahead of the match, both managers were seen exchanging words.

The situation soon became heated as Brighton boss De Zerbi was visibly agitated as he started to point his fingers in the direction of the Spurs manager.

After 60 minutes into the clash both managers were given their marching orders as tempers flared again.

Fans were quick to react to the incident on social media.

One said: “De Zerbi having a go at Stellini for some reason, finger wagging.”

Another tweeted: “Hopefully De Zerbi telling Stellini he’s taking Stellini’s job soon.”

A third fan added: “Proper strange behaviour from De Zerbi before the game. I’m not too sure what he was moaning to Stellini about but I’m pretty confident he wouldn’t have acted like that if Conte was still in the dugout…”

Someone else wrote: “De Zerbi pointing fingers in Stellini’s face for not showing Loyalty to Conte, it’s an Italian thing.”

Whilst a fifth commented: “What was with the frostiness between Stellini & De Zerbi?”

A fiery start to Spurs v Brighton 😳

Roberto De Zerbi with some strong words for Tottenham's interim boss Cristian Stellini after the pre-match handshake! 🤬

Stream #PLGoalRush LIVE, or on demand after, here 📺 https://t.co/otj7WlGm6Y#OptusSport #PL pic.twitter.com/oxpEjcLjCi

— Optus Sport (@OptusSport) April 8, 2023

 As the match got underway, it was Stellini who had the first laugh as Son Heung Min scored inside 10 minutes to give Spurs a vital lead.

If Spurs win, they will put seven points behind themselves and Brighton in the race for Champions League football. Stellini's future will be the talk of the town for the remainder of the season after Antonio Conte's sacking.

Recently, he insisted his Spurs side will show their fighting spirit.

Stellini said: “The more you try to punch us, more we are tight, we stick together and more we react. This has to be clear for you guys and for all the people who try to punch us. Because with the speculation, you create only energy on us.”