"Tense atmosphere" in the Real dressing room – is there a row over Rüdiger too?

Real Madrid CF Training Session And Press Conference - UEFA Champions League 2025/26 Round of 16 Second Leg

Things just won't settle down at Real Madrid. Now another report is fuelling rumours of a rift within the squad. Antonio Rüdiger is also in the spotlight.

According to a report in the newspaper Mundo Deportivo, there is an "explosive atmosphere" in the Real Madrid dressing room, and there is no sign of things calming down. 

Instead, the title race—already effectively over by the time they faced arch-rivals FC Barcelona—and their Champions League quarter-final exit at the hands of FC Bayern Munich have only made matters worse. Real have won just one of their last six matches and are set to finish the season without a major trophy for the second year running. 

"The Royals' dressing room has become a real powder keg," the report adds. Rumours of internal friction among the players persist, while manager Alvaro Arbeloa faces widespread dissatisfaction; his position is expected to become untenable once the campaign ends. Star names Kylian Mbappe, Vinicius Junior and Jude Bellingham have been repeatedly linked with on-going discord, including clashes with one another.

FC Bayern München v Real Madrid CF - UEFA Champions League 2025/26 Quarter-Final Second Leg

Real Madrid: Antonio Rüdiger is reported to have "lost his cool".

On Friday, Marca and AS reported that a dispute between midfielder Dani Ceballos and Arbeloa had escalated during a private conversation the previous day, leaving Ceballos unwilling to have any further contact with the Real Madrid coach for the remainder of the season. 

Arbeloa addressed the issue cautiously at a press conference on Saturday: "I do not discuss my affairs with my players in public. Over 20 years ago, the first thing I learnt from the experienced players was that what happens in the dressing room stays there. I have stuck to that for 20 years and I will continue to do so."

Separately, ESPN claims that Antonio Rüdiger recently clashed with a teammate, an incident the club tried to hush up. Mundo Deportivo adds that the defender "lost his temper". Tensions also flared between Arbeloa and Dani Carvajal, as well as Raul Asencio.

Arbeloa set to leave Real – will Mourinho take over?

This would not be Rüdiger's first recent misstep. Most recently, during the quarter-final second leg against Bayern, Josip Stanisic accused him of a below-the-belt insult. "It was just one word—said twice. But you can ask him yourself what he said. Perhaps he's man enough to admit it!" the Croatian emphasised at the time. 

Meanwhile, consistent media reports claim that Real's hierarchy is urgently seeking a successor to Arbeloa, who replaced Xabi Alonso only at the start of the year. According to The Athletic, president Florentino Perez favours Jose Mourinho to restore discipline to the squad, and the Special One has played down the speculation, insisting that "nobody from Real Madrid" has contacted him. 

Other candidates mentioned recently include outgoing France coach Didier Deschamps, Jürgen Klopp and Massimiliano Allegri.