Federico Valverde punches Villarreal's Alex Baena in car park after Real Madrid defeat
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Real Madrid midfielder Federico Valverde allegedly punched Villarreal forward Alex Baena in the Bernabeu car park after Saturday's heated La Liga clash, say reports.
The Uruguayan midfielder waited by the Villarreal team bus in the stadium's parking lot after the full-time whistle and asked Baena to repeat what he claimed had been said on the pitch, according to ESPN.
Valverde is said to have reacted furiously when the Spain U21 international made 'derogatory remarks about his unborn child,' sources told the publication.
Baena first made the comments during Villarreal's Copa del Rey clash against Real Madrid on January 19, when Los Blancos came from 2-0 down to win 3-2 thanks to goals from Vinicius, Eder Militao and Dani Ceballos.
As reported by ESPN, he said: "Cry, because your child won't be born."
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As per Spanish publication MARCA, Valverde's entourage said: "In the Copa del Rey match, Baena kicked Fede and told him 'cry now that your son is not going to be born.'
"That stayed there, but today he said another similar thing to him, and Fede got heated. So he waited for him in the parking lot and told him that he was 'not messing with his family.'"
Back in February, Mina Bonino, Valverde's partner since 2019, said they had believed they had lost their child before further tests found that their baby was healthy.
She said: "Recently, news came out that I had lost a pregnancy. I was not able to deny it, because it was what we believed would happen.
"It was incompatible with life. We prepare for a month for the worst. As the pregnancy was very advanced we had to confirm it with the test. And after having cried for a whole month, having mourned, while I had my second son in my belly, yesterday the unexpected news came to us: the baby is fine.
"Everything is normal. We haven't processed it yet, it was a very difficult month and this is starting over. THANK YOU."
Federico Valverde punched Alex Baena after Madrid's defeat to Villarreal, sources have confirmed to ESPN.
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) April 9, 2023
Valverde reacted angrily to alleged remarks that Baena made about his unborn child, sources said. Valverde and his partner Mina Bonino had a miscarriage scare in February. pic.twitter.com/0Q8Xr8Dtsq
Following the incident in January, Valverde and Baena also clashed during Saturday afternoon's game.
After the final whistle, Villarreal club official Xisco Nadal tweeted that Valverde was “a coward” – a post he later deleted.
Villarreal, meanwhile, are said to have spoken to Spanish police about possible courses of action.
Baena himself has since commented on the widespread reports and has insisted that he did not previously insult Valverde.
Taking to Instagram, he wrote: "Very happy with the impressive victory of the team on a stage like the Santiago Bernabeu, but at the same time very sad about the aggression I suffered after the match and surprised by what is being said about my person. It is totally false that I said that!"
Featured Image Credit: Alamy/Instagram - minabonino
Topics: Real Madrid, Villarreal, La Liga, Federico Valverde
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