Real Madrid midfielder Fede Valverde was unexpectedly substituted at halftime during their 3-1 defeat to AC Milan on Tuesday, alongside Aurelien Tchouameni. Following the match, Ancelotti mentioned that Valverde was struggling with fitness issues, including a back problem, which contributed to his early exit. However, Valverde has strongly disputed these claims, insisting that he felt fine during the game and was confused by Ancelotti\u2019s remarks. According to reports from *Cadena Cope*, Valverde described Ancelotti\u2019s comments as a \u201clie,\u201d and he couldn\u2019t understand why the back issue was being mentioned, as he didn\u2019t experience any such problem.<\/p>\n
The situation was further complicated when Valverde\u2019s wife, Mina Bonino, criticized Ancelotti\u2019s decision on social media, although she later deleted the tweet, claiming her account was hacked during the game. Despite this, the criticism reached Ancelotti in his press conference, where he stuck to his explanation of a back issue for the midfielder\u2019s substitution.<\/p>\n
This public disagreement adds to the tension within the club, especially as Valverde is one of Ancelotti\u2019s most dependable players. While Real Madrid\u2019s midfield has struggled this season, Valverde, at 26, remains a crucial part of the team and is often deployed in the central role. With the atmosphere reportedly tense both on and off the pitch, Ancelotti will need to be careful not to alienate his key players.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Real Madrid midfielder Fede Valverde was unexpectedly substituted at halftime during their 3-1 defeat to AC Milan on Tuesday, alongside Aurelien Tchouameni. Following the match, Ancelotti mentioned that Valverde was struggling with fitness issues, including a back problem, which contributed to his early exit. However, Valverde has strongly disputed these claims, insisting that he felt […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":25383,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n