The Real Madrid midfielder addressed the controversy during an appearance on the podcast *The Bridge*, insisting that the episode between the pair was not the serious confrontation it had been portrayed as in the media.
“There was no fight as was said,” Tchouaméni said. “There were things that happened in a dressing room, as happens all the time. Small disagreements…”
The French international’s comments are his latest attempt to reduce the attention surrounding the incident, which generated considerable speculation about relations inside the Real Madrid dressing room. He said the episode had been given an outsized significance because it happened at one of the world’s most closely scrutinised clubs.
“When you're at Madrid, a small thing becomes something huge. Everything takes on an incredible media dimension,” he explained.
Tchouaméni’s account was that the disagreement was an ordinary part of life in a competitive squad, rather than evidence of a lasting split between team-mates. He also made clear that his relationship with Valverde had returned to normal.
“Today you go into the dressing room, you're with Fede, we're relaxed, there's no problem. On the pitch it's the same and life goes on,” he said.
The midfielder’s latest remarks follow previous comments in which he also sought to play down the reports. His message has remained consistent: there was an incident, but it did not amount to the major fight described in some coverage.
Tchouaméni compared the atmosphere inside a dressing room to family life, where occasional disagreements need not become lasting disputes.
“We're a bit like a family. Sometimes you have small arguments or situations like that, but afterwards they pass,” he said.
The comparison reflected his wider point that footballers working together at the highest level will not always agree, but such moments do not automatically mean that relationships have broken down. He was keen to distinguish everyday friction from the more dramatic version of events that circulated publicly.
Asked whether he would go on holiday with Valverde, Tchouaméni replied that they were not travelling at the same time, ending the exchange with a laugh.
The incident attracted attention because of the profile of both players and the intense scrutiny surrounding Real Madrid. Tchouaméni believes that context turned a relatively minor episode into a much larger story.
His latest intervention is intended to close the subject rather than reopen it. By stressing that he and Valverde remain on good terms, the midfielder has again rejected the suggestion that the disagreement created a continuing problem within the squad.
For Tchouaméni, the key point is that normal life at the club has continued, despite the scale of the outside reaction.