Real Madrid midfielder Federico Valverde has dismissed reports of a serious dressing room fight with teammate Aurelien Tchouameni, insisting the incident at the club’s training ground was exaggerated during an already difficult season for the Spanish giants.
After Valverde was apparently transported to the hospital following a fiery fight during practice at Real Madrid’s Valdebebas facility, hypothesis surfaced. According to several accounts, the Uruguayan had a head injury following a physical fight with Tchouameni.
Valverde said though that tensions increased during training, the situation never developed into a major conflict. He claims that resentment from a taxing campaign and meager results helped to cause the conflict among players.
The News Chronicle reports that Valverde also stated that a club member might have leaked false information about the incident and that changing-room battles are frequent in football and are often dealt with in secret.
The midfielder said he required medical care because he suffered a small cut after accidentally headbutting a table during the exchange. He also apologised to supporters for the uproar, citing the letdowns of the season as having affected feelings within the team.
Internal disciplinary investigations have apparently started at Real Madrid, and both players are anticipated to miss the next El Clasico game against FC Barcelona.
