Real Madrid fans have loved Fede Valverde since day one. His never say die attitude, engine, and burgeoning quality have made him one of the most important players at the club since 2019/20 when Zinedine Zidane controversially gave him a shot to start regularly, discarding icons Isco and James Rodriguez to accommodate the unproven Uruguayan international.
Then, in 2021/22, Fede become a main starter on the right wing over Marco Asensio proved to be the catalyst in Carlo Ancelotti getting Real Madrid back to the summit of the Champions League. Since then, Fede has become even more regarded around the world of football as an elite midfielder, scoring some of the most sensational goals from beyond the box.
But early this season, Valverde began to show cracks that Real Madrid fans had never seen before. The fiery temper Valverde once used to punch Alex Baena in the parking lot years ago after a La Liga game began to turn its ugly head into an ego that Madridistas would have never guessed the previously hard working and humble Valverde would ever exhibit.
Fede Valverde already got one coach fired
Valverde was part of the contingent that got Xabi Alonso fired, even refusing to play at right back, which was an unthinkable action back in the day. Real Madrid fans forgot all about it and even assumed Alonso may have been the issue when Fede's play rebounded under Alvaro Arbeloa, and he was the hero again with his match winning hat trick against Manchester City in the Champions League.
But now, Fede Valverde is back to being the villain. As more details about the gruesome fight on Thursday at Real Madrid training, which as preceded by an uncomfortable shouting match the day before, emerge, Valverde looks less and less like a captain or a victim and more and more like another overinflated ego who is part of the problem in the locker room.
Per a report from Diario AS, via Madrid Xtra, Valverde was barking at Aurelien Tchouameni in the locker room on Thursday, accusing the Frenchman of leaking news to the press of their fight the day before. Tchou tried to get him to calm down and stop and even offered to shake his hand. Valverde became even more beiligerent and other players could not calm him down. Fede then kept pushing Tchou to the point where Tchou fought back, punching Fede in the head and decking him to the floor. Valverde then had to head to the hospital in a wheelchair.
Tchouameni sounds like the aggressor by knocking out Fede, but the story of the fight from AS and other media outlets paints a different story. It is the classic story of a playground bully, as Fede was also trying to injure Tchouameni with hard tackles during training - and the two reportedly had friction for months. Valverde was the aggressor, Tchouameni tried to make peace, Fede kept acting like a petulant child (which has been the case all season), and he f'd around and found out.
Valverde's conduct this season has been unbecoming of a Real Madrid captain. Selling him off sounds like a step too drastic, but Valverde, like the others, has gotten too big for his britches. If that knockout blow didn't cut his head down a size, then hopefully Florentino Perez (and maybe Jose Mourinho) will set him straight. This is not how a captain acts, and until he changes course, he may need that armband removed.
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