Ex-Liverpool defender Alvaro Arbeloa has reeled through his mental archives to recall Craig Bellamy striking John Arne Riise with a golf club to describe Real Madrid‘s controversy.
Last week, Federico Valverde and Aurelien Tchouameni were embroiled in a behind-the-scenes bust up, resulting in the former being taken to hospital with a head injury and Real Madrid opening disciplinary proceedings against both players.
Naturally this became world news and pressure has been on interim boss Arbeloa ever since, with the former Liverpool man being repeatedly put on the spot to dish out the details.
Given the scale of the unrest, 43-year-old Arbeloa has been unable to downplay such a situation but has instead opted to hark back to his Anfield days and use the tale of Bellamy and Riise to somewhat aid understanding.
? Álvaro Arbeloa justifica la pelea entre Tchouameni y Valverde:
? "Yo he tenido un compañero que ha cogido un palo de golf y le ha pegado un palazo a otro"
? "Lo que pasa en el vestuario del Real Madrid debería quedarse en el vestuario del Real Madrid"
? "Fue un… pic.twitter.com/0Z4cHuxizY
— Mundo Deportivo (@mundodeportivo) May 9, 2026
“I had a team-mate who picked up a golf club and hit another player,” Arbeloa told Spanish media during his pre-match press conference ahead of El Clasico.
“They’re situations that shouldn’t happen between team-mates, but they’ve always happened.
“I’m not justifying it, but I’ve experienced even worse situations than this.”
What happened with Craig Bellamy, John Arne Riise and the golf club?
Barcelona, Spain - Tuesday, February 20, 2007: Liverpool's Craig Bellamy and John Arne Riise training ahead of the UEFA Champions League First Knockout Round 1st Leg match against FC Barcelona at the Nou Camp. (Pic by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
Back in 2007, just prior to Liverpool facing Barcelona in the Champions League round of 16, a massive fracas took place during a warm-weather training camp.
That it included renowned controversial character Bellamy came as little surprise, but softly spoken Riise being the other party involved made the incident all the more strange.
After travelling to the Algarve in Portugal, Liverpool players had been relaxing with a team-bonding evening that involved generous amounts of alcohol and a karaoke machine.
Speaking years later on the incident, Riise outlined that it began after Bellamy tried to pressure him into singing in front of the whole squad.
After refusing and fronting to the Welshman that he should sit down and leave him alone, Riise recalled that Bellamy was simply unable to let it drop and the anger began to burn away at him all evening.
Writing in the Guardian in 2018, Riise recounted: “A couple of the lads started drinking before the food arrived. Among them was Craig Bellamy.
“Pretty soon a microphone appeared on the table and Bellamy bellowed into it: ‘Riise’s gonna sing! Riise’s gonna sing!’. He started before the food was served and continued while we ate. He was already quite drunk and I was already quite annoyed.
Barcelona, Spain - Wednesday, February 21, 2007: Liverpool's John Arne Riise celebrates winning the first goal against FC Barcelona during the UEFA Champions League First Knockout Round 1st Leg match at the Nou Camp. (Pic by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
“Pretty soon Bellamy was over by the karaoke machine with the microphone in the hand: ‘Riise’s gonna sing! Riise’s gonna sing!’.
“Furious, I went over to him: ‘I’m not singing. Shut the f*** up or else I’m gonna smash you!’. He screamed back: ‘I’m gonna f*****g kill you!’.”
After going back to their respective hotel rooms, Riise was later awoken in the dead of the night by a still furious and highly inebriated Bellamy, who in his rage swung a golf iron towards his legs.
The pair had to be separated by Daniel Agger and Steve Finnan, with Riise even admitting that Bellamy had requested a fist fight for the following morning.
Needless to say that did not materialise, though the two players made both the front and back pages of the newspapers for days afterwards.
To put the cherry on the cake, both Bellamy and Riise featured and each scored during the fixture away in Barcelona, registering a famous 2-1 victory at the Nou Camp.
Bellamy marked his goal with a now-infamous golf swing celebration, etching his name into Liverpool folklore.
Barcelona, Spain - Wednesday, February 21, 2007: Liverpool's Alvaro Arbeloa and FC Barcelona's Lionel Messi during the UEFA Champions League First Knockout Round 1st Leg match at the Nou Camp. (Pic by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
Arbeloa used the tale of his former team-mates to highlight just how crazy things can get inside a football club, though players still come together thereafter and work for the greater good of the team.
The former Liverpool man may very soon be relieved of his duties however, as Madrid continue their search for a new full-time manager.
Los Blancos face bitter rivals Barcelona in a Clasico showdown on Sunday evening in Catalonia, defeat in which will see Hansi Flick’s men declared champions.