Mukhtalif al-hadith addresses apparently opposed accepted narrations about a shared issue. The researcher asks whether they apply to different circumstances, people, times, or causes, or whether one gives a general rule and the other a specific exception.
A real contradiction would require their implications to be incompatible in the same respect and relevant setting. Where one addresses a normal situation and the other an exceptional case, the difference may be only apparent.
Accordingly, the methodological priority is to test a defensible reconciliation before setting aside either report.