Future Real Madrid captain Federico Valverde reportedly almost came to blows with Aurélien Tchouaméni at Valdebebas on Wednesday in a training ground bust-up that spiraled the club further into crisis.
Labeling Los Blancos’ dressing room as fractured might be putting it mildly. Recent reports claim Kylian Mbappé got into a heated confrontation with a member of the coaching staff before he jetted off on an Italian vacation, which was not well received by his teammates or Madridistas.
Then, Álvaro Carreras seemingly confirmed Antonio Rüdiger slapped him during a training session—and tensions are only getting worse. According to MARCA, Valverde and Tchouaméni had “one of the most heated exchanges ever seen” at the training ground that nearly turned physical.
A foul on the pitch sparked a confrontation that quickly escalated, with both players pushing one another in a tense argument. The altercation continued into the dressing room in what was described as a “very unpleasant incident.”
Tensions Worsen at Real Madrid
Such clashes on the training ground happen in soccer and are often blown out of proportion. Yet the number of incidents happening at Real Madrid is a cause of major concern.
The team has now failed to win a major trophy in back-to-back seasons and is not meshing on or off the pitch. Rüdiger and even Mbappé at the center of flare-ups come as no surprise, but Valverde and Tchouaméni, two players that are typically very level-headed, raises more than just a few alarms.
On top of the training ground confrontations, MARCA report six players in the dressing room “refuse” to speak to manager Álvaro Arbeloa. The Spanish boss previously had a falling out with Raúl Asencio and the same has seemingly occured with Carreras, who has found a permanent place on the bench in recent weeks.
Arbeloa is expected to make way for a high-profile new hire this summer—former boss José Mourninho is the reported frontrunner—but it will take a lot more than just one new voice in the dressing room to heal the cracks at the biggest club in the world.
El Clásico Could Be More Heated Than Ever Before
All the drama unfolding at Real Madrid comes in the build-up to Sunday’s El Clásico. The 15-time European champions will be eager to collect three points against Barcelona, denying Hansi Flick’s men the La Liga title for the second-consecutive week.
The most famous derby in the sport always delivers intense moments between the bitter rivals, with the October edition ending in a flurry of bookings for eight players as both sides had to be seperated on multiple occasions.
Now, the tension might increase tenfold given the nature of Real Madrid’s internal issues. Either way, this weekend’s bout at the Camp Nou will be another must-see contest that could produce fireworks all over the pitch.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Fede Valverde Nearly Comes to Blows With Real Madrid Teammate in ‘Explosive’ Training Row.
