Real Madrid manager Alvaro Arbeloa confirmed on Saturday that Federico Valverde and Aurelien Tchouameni have formally apologized following a physical altercation in the locker room. The head coach has urged his squad to move past the incident and shift their focus toward Sunday’s battle against league leaders Barcelona.
The clash resulted in a head injury for Valverde, who is expected to be out of action for approximately two weeks. In response to the breach of conduct, the club imposed heavy disciplinary measures on Friday, fining both players 500,000 euros ($590,000) each.
“The players have acknowledged their mistake, expressed their regret and asked for forgiveness. That’s enough for me. What I’m not going to do is put them in the pillory, because they don’t deserve it,” Arbeloa told reporters.
“These two players deserve for us to turn the page, to give them a chance to keep fighting for this club. I’m very proud of them. I won’t allow this to be used to cast doubt on their professionalism. It’s a lie that they are not professional.”
Former Spain, Real and Liverpool defender Arbeloa said dressing-room fights were not uncommon.
“I’ve had a teammate who picked up a golf club and swung it at another player. What happens in the Real Madrid dressing room should stay in the Real Madrid dressing room, and that’s what hurts me the most,” the 43-year-old said.
“These are situations that have always happened, but I’m certainly not justifying it. It was an incident and we were unlucky that Fede ended up with a gash, it’s more down to bad luck than what actually happened.”
The coach said the ultimate responsibility lay with him.
“If you want to blame someone, here I am,” he said.
No Disrespect From Players, Says Arbelao
Arbeloa also dismissed media reports that the Real players have been disrespecting him and underperforming, with the club on the verge of going trophyless for the second year straight.
“It’s an absolute lie. I’m the one primarily responsible for the fact that we’ve probably not been up to scratch this season. But I’ve been here for four months and I’m very proud of my players,” he said.
“I’m proud of how they’ve welcomed me… it’s clear that frustration and anger can lead you into situations you don’t want. Now we have to focus on the match. That’s where we need to direct our attention now.”
Leaders Barcelona, who are 11 points above Real, only need a draw to secure their second straight LaLiga title on Sunday.
(With Inputs from Reuters)
