Sheffield United players fought amongst themselves as they slumped to another damaging Premier League defeat in a 1-0 reverse at Wolves.
Team-mates Jack Robinson and Vini Souza clashed in the first half with the ill-disciplined Blades left rooted to the bottom of the table following the narrow loss.
The pair squared up with the visitors already behind to Pablo Sarabia’s first-half header and they will need to channel any further fighting spirit into a survival bid which looks increasingly doomed.
Chris Wilder’s side are eight points from safety and another poor performance offered no hope for their chances.
In contrast, the victory was Wolves’ first top-flight win at Molineux this year and lifted the hosts to eighth as they maintain a surprise European challenge.
They are a point behind Brighton in seventh as Gary O’Neil’s men continue to impress and dismiss the predictions of a season of struggle.
Wolves, though, were not at their best at Molineux but did not have to be to beat the Blades.
It took until the 18th minute for some serious action when Rhian Brewster was left unmarked to test Jose Sa, after Craig Dawson blocked his initial effort.
The former Liverpool youngster then had a second opening five minutes later, only to shank his shot wide under pressure from Toti Gomes.
Despite bossing possession, Wolves struggled to open the visitors up and it was O’Neil’s men who conceded the chances.
James McAtee became the latest wasteful Blade when he fired straight at Sa, having escaped from Dawson on the left and United’s misses proved costly after 30 minutes.
Yet again the visitors’ soft underbelly became their greatest issue as they conceded goal number 66 of the season.
Yasser Larouci was caught napping, allowing Sarabia to arrive unchecked to meet Rayan Ait-Nouri’s inviting cross and glance a looping header into the top corner.
With it, Sheffield United cracked with Robinson and Souza pushing and trading blows after Pedro Neto shot over.
In December Wilder had called for his players to “swing some punches” in the battle against relegation – though he would not have expected them to take his words so literally.
VAR gave the pair a pass but the Blades had lost their discipline and needed half-time to regroup.
They did manage to put Wolves under mild pressure and McAtee dragged a shot wide but there was never a sense Wilder’s side would equalise.
Brewster tested Sa as United’s momentum faded and Sarabia went close to a second when he curled wide just after the hour.
A pedestrian half rarely found its groove, though, and the visitors never had Wolves on the ropes as they suffered another knockout blow in the Premier League.
Postecoglou not motivated by denting Arsenal's title hopes in north London derby
Ange Postecoglou insists Tottenham must focus on themselves heading into the north London derby with Arsenal, rather than on denting their rivals' Premier League title hopes.
With four matches remaining, the Gunners are a point clear at the summit from reigning champions Manchester City, who still have a game in hand on Mikel Arteta's side in second place.
While Arsenal look to stay very much in the hunt for a first league crown in 20 years, fifth-place Tottenham will aim to reduce their six-point deficit to fourth-place Aston Villa, on whom they have two games in hand.
Spurs are winless in the last three north London derbies - winning just one of the most recent six - though they twice came from behind to earn a point in September's reverse fixture at the Emirates Stadium.
And Postecoglou has his sights firmly set on beating his side's rivals, and says his players are not driven by the prospect of thwarting their opponents' title bid.
"Not in terms of that as a motivation," he said when asked if he would like to dent Arsenal's title hopes.
"I understand the importance of winning against your traditional rival. I never believe your motivation should revolve around the demise of somebody else.
"Your motivation should be about yourself. We can win on Sunday, but it doesn't mean we are title contenders this year. I want to win because I want us to progress. I want us to be in a position fighting for the title.
"If that's your kind of measure, always peering over the back fence to see what your neighbour's building, you could both have the worst houses in the street because everyone else is building beautiful places, and you're looking over the back fence."
Leicester City seal automatic Premier League return
Leicester City are once more a Premier League team, having bounced straight back after relegation last season.
The Foxes secured automatic promotion without kicking a ball, as title rivals Leeds United lost 4-0 away to Queens Park Rangers on Friday.
Marti Cifuentes' Hoops side gave their fans a reason to cheer in their final home game of the season, and the emphatic win means they are now seven points clear of the relegation zone.
The Hoops boss told BBC Sport: "I came here, perhaps I was crazy thinking we could manage the great escape.
"The atmosphere has been unbelievable since I came here. Everybody thought tonight could be a special night to achieve our target.
"Big players deliver big performances and our players all did that tonight."
Defeat ensured only Ipswich Town can now finish above Leicester, meaning the Foxes will be back in the big time.
Ipswich, who have three games left to play, face play-off hopefuls Hull City on Saturday.
Speaking to BBC Sport, Leeds boss Daniel Farke said: "It's not in our hands any more [automatic promotion], we need to be honest.
"The race is not over. If Ipswich win the next two games then I will say congratulations, but if they don’t win them then we will have a lot to play for.
"As long as we have a chance, I’m far away from giving up."
Leicester could be crowned champions if they beat Preston North End on Monday and if Hull beat Ipswich.
The Foxes are looking to break the 100-point barrier, despite a wobble from Enzo Maresca's side in recent months.
After they had been so far ahead and top for all but two of the 176 days between 23 September and 17 March, an untimely dip in form handed Leeds and Ipswich hope.
However, while Leicester celebrate their promotion, they face the daunting prospect of starting next season with a points deduction, after they were charged by the Premier League with alleged breaches of the competition's Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR).
Nashville SC v San Jose Earthquakes: ‘A win would change everything’ - Godoy
Anibal Godoy insists that Nashville are already looking at their game against San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday as a must-win.
Nashville have won just once in the MLS this season and sit in 14th place in the Eastern Conference after a run of four without a win.
The Earthquakes, meanwhile, are bottom of the Western Conference having lost eight of their matches and recording just one win.
Godoy is aware of how their poor start to the season could affect their playoff hopes later down the line but is confident that Nashville can turn things around.
He said: “For us, it's an important week. It's a day we have to win, or we'll start to feel the pressure from other teams as they start to separate in the table.
“This league is long but if we want to get to the playoff you have to win games early on, especially at home.”
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