Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Federico Valverde and Aurelien Tchouameni have played 32 and 30 times in La Liga this season respectively
- Published8 May 2026, 16:58 BST
Real Madrid have fined midfielders Aurelien Tchouameni and Federico Valverde a combined 1m euros following a dressing room row between the pair.
Valverde, 27, went to hospital with a head injury after the spat with 26-year-old France international Tchouameni but denied the pair "came to blows".
The Uruguayan said the injury, which will keep him out of El Clasico against Barcelona on Sunday, was caused when he "accidentally hit a table".
Both players attended an internal disciplinary meeting on Friday and accepted fines of £432,000 (500,000 euros) each.
"During the appearance, the players expressed their deep regret for what happened and apologised to each other," said Real Madrid in a statement.
"They have also apologised to the club, their team-mates, the coaching staff and the fans, and both have made themselves available to Real Madrid to accept whatever sanction the club deems appropriate."
Valverde was diagnosed with a cranioencephalic trauma, a type of concussion, but said on Instagram on Wednesday he had suffered a "small cut on my forehead that required a routine visit to the hospital" during what he described as an argument.
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Tchouameni apologised in a statement on social media on Friday and said that what happened was "unacceptable", although he felt some of the claims made online about the incident were wide of the mark.
"The internet loves to invent the wildest stories for the buzz so don't believe everything that's being said or the false narrative," he wrote.
"No matter who is right or wrong, we should always look for the calmest solution to resolve a conflict.
"Now is no longer the time to figure out who did what, who said what, or who was right or wrong. I acknowledge the club's sanction and I accept it. "
Tchouameni said that even those type of incidents "can happen in any dressing room", they are "not worthy of Real Madrid" as it is the "most talked-about club in the world".
He added: "We remain a family, with disagreements at times, but we must always put our objectives above everything else. I have apologised to the group, and I also want to extend my apologies to all Madridistas.
"Now it is time to move forward, and all our focus is on El Clasico and on the season ahead, to bring the club back to the top, where it belongs."
