News broke Thursday morning of an incident between Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouameni in training, which led to the Uruguayan midfielder being taken to a hospital to treat his injuries.
Initial reports indicated that a rift between the two players began after a hard challenge by Tchouameni during training on Wednesday. The Frenchman reportedly tried to apologize for the incident, but Valverde rejected his attempt. The tension carried over to Thursday’s training, where Valverde responded with hard challenges of his own. This ongoing conflict eventually escalated into a physical altercation on Thursday, during which Tchouameni allegedly struck Valverde, leaving the Uruguayan unconscious.
Following tests carried out on Valverde, he was diagnosed with cranioencephalic trauma following the hit on his head and will need to rest for 10 to 14 days. This news officially ruled him out for this weekend’s El Clásico. However, contrary to the reports that came out, Valverde claims that there was no physical altercation. In his statement, he claims, «At no point did my team-mate hit me, and I didn’t hit him either, although I understand it’s easier for you to believe we came to blows or that it was intentional, but that didn’t happen.»
Real Madrid officially announced that, following the incidents that occurred during the training session, they opened disciplinary proceedings against the two players. A later announcement confirmed that the club had decided to conclude internal procedures by imposing a financial penalty of €500,000 for each player.
This all comes just days before Real Madrid visits FC Barcelona at the Camp Nou. A win for Barcelona on Sunday will secure the La Liga title for the Catalan side.
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