Fiji international Leone Nakarawa has been sensationally sacked by his club Racing 92 for going AWOL in the weeks following the Rugby World Cup.
Nakarawa, the 2018 European Player of the Year, was late in returning to his club following his involvement with Fiji in Japan.
The lock was expected to return to club duty on 28 October but the Racing statement on his sacking says he was absent without permission for two weeks beyond that date.
The club insist his actions showed "a total lack of team spirit and marked insubordination."
The strongly worded statement detailed that Nakarawa did not respond to their messages during his two week absence and criticised the player for showing a "deplorable example" to teammates.
Nakarawa was accused by the club of "abandoning his post."
The 31-year old lock signed for Racing from Glasgow in 2016 and is widely held to be one of the finest forwards in world rugby.
Sale Sharks coach Steve Diamond said recently that they had spoken to Nakarawa about joining the Premiership club.
