Real Madrid‘s dressing room has descended into chaos in the days leading up to El Clásico against FC Barcelona on Sunday. The latest flashpoint involves Federico Valverde and Aurelien Tchouameni, with reports claiming the Uruguayan was taken to the hospital on Thursday following a physical altercation between the two players.
The trouble began on Wednesday when Valverde and Tchouaméni had a heated confrontation that required several teammates to step in and prevent further escalation. The situation appeared to have been defused in the aftermath, but the hope for a quick resolution proved short-lived.
According to Diario AS, the two players clashed again on Thursday in an even more serious incident, with teammates once again forced to intervene. The confrontation left Valverde requiring hospital treatment to receive stitches for a gash, and he was reported to have left in a wheelchair due to dizziness.
The Wednesday tensions carried over into Thursday when reports indicated that Valverde refused to acknowledge Tchouameni with a greeting. Marca then reported that things escalated further during training, with the Uruguayan making hard tackles over the Frenchman, who accussed of leaking details of the previous day’s incident to the press. Tchouameni’s response to that accusation is said to have triggered the physical confrontation that followed.
Aurelien Tchouameni and Federico Valverde of Real Madrid.
Real Madrid to take action over Valverde and Tchouaméni
Despite both midfielders being expected to start in El Clasico, the club has moved swiftly to address the situation. Fabrizio Romano has reported that president Florentino Perez will be pursuing disciplinary measures against both Valverde and Tchouameni in response to the events of recent days.
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A formal disciplinary file has been opened on each player, with both a financial penalty and a suspension expected to follow. With only four La Liga games remaining in the 2025-26 season, there is a realistic possibility that neither Valverde nor Tchouameni will feature again for Real Madrid this campaign, starting with Sunday’s Clasico.
Will Friday’s training session go ahead?
The week at Real Madrid had already been turbulent before this latest development, with Kylian Mbappe’s Italian getaway drawing criticism and Antonio Rüdiger reportedly striking Alvaro Carreras, who addressed the incident publicly on social media. The Tchouameni-Valverde saga has now pushed the situation to a new level, prompting intervention from within the squad itself.
According to Cadena Cope, a number of Real Madrid players asked head coach Alvaro Arbeloa to cancel Friday’s training session in order to prevent any further flare-ups between the conflicting parties. Arbeloa has reportedly rejected that request, insisting on proceeding with preparations for the Barcelona match and expecting all players to report to the Valdebebas training complex as scheduled.
