Liverpool attacker Craig Bellamy clashed with QPR captain Joey Barton at Anfield on Saturday.
The Daily Mail reports the combative pair were embroiled in a foul-mouthed row moments after the final whistle as bad blood between the two spilled into the tunnel area.
Bellamy and Barton traded explicit F-word rants as the rift threatened to erupt into something more violent.
But the pair were separated and ushered into their respective dressing rooms before the row escalated any further.
An eyewitness revealed: "It was more words than anything else, like handbags at 10 paces.
"Let's just say some of the language they used was only for the ears of the working man.
"But neither player would have voluntarily backed down. There was a bit of a giggle in the tunnel afterwards given which players were involved."