Dani Carvajal has spoken with striking candour about the behind-the-scenes tension that gripped Real Madrid's dressing room last season. The former captain played down the well-known clash between Fede Valverde and Aurelien Tchouameni, insisting such incidents are part and parcel of professional football.
The veteran full-back left the Bernabeu after 13 years with the first team. In a lengthy interview with Manu Carreno on "El Larguero" on "Cadena Ser" radio, he said: "No, it was not that important at all. I have been at Real Madrid for many years, and players have come to blows several times, but there were no consequences."
A fight ending in a head wound
The row between the two midfielders caused a wide stir. A heated verbal argument inside the dressing room turned into a fist fight, one said to have left Valverde with a head wound that required stitches. Suddenly the team's atmosphere sat at the heart of public debate during a difficult season that yielded no titles.
For Carvajal, the incident grew far bigger than it deserved simply because it went public. Internal disagreements, he insisted, do not mean there are permanent divisions in the dressing room.
The leak angers the captain
What truly stirred his displeasure was not the fight itself. It was the speed with which the story reached the press.
He put it plainly: "The strange thing about this matter is the leak, as it was published in the press after only half an hour. I am a believer in the need to maintain the secrecy of the dressing room, and this really bothers me."
Discretion matters hugely in an environment as competitive as Real Madrid, where any internal incident can turn into a media bombshell within minutes.
A difficult season without titles
Captaining the side last season ranked among the toughest periods of Carvajal's career. He faced a trophy drought, relentless media pressure and whispers running through the squad.
He said: "I had to be captain in my second year without titles, and managing the dressing room and dealing with the whispers is not an easy matter."
His leadership style has always been rooted in humility, he stressed, demanding no privileges on the back of his career or the captain's armband. Now he has turned the page on Real Madrid and begun a new challenge in a Getafe shirt.