Valverde was sued by his opponent to the Spanish Police
Baena has the right to file a complaint with the Police or the Spanish Football Federation, or both. But the Villarreal midfielder decided to only file a complaint with the Police in Castellon. As a result, Valverde escaped a 12-match ban, because this is considered a criminal proceeding, not a sports proceeding.
After Real lost to Villarreal 2-3 in round 28 of La Liga on the evening of April 8, Valverde waited and punched Baena in the bus yard outside the Bernabeu. The TV show El Chiringuito also recorded Baena suffering from swelling on her left cheek as she walked to the car to return home.
Villarreal had video evidence of the assault, but decided not to appeal and let Baena handle the matter herself. "Yellow Submarine" announced in favor of Baena to the end in the lawsuit. "Baena decided to file a complaint against the attacker with the National Police," Villarreal said in a statement. "We condemn all acts of violence and have full confidence in the player of the team, supporting him in this incident."
According to Spanish newspaper Marca, Baena first insulted Valverde's unborn child at the King's Cup on January 19. There, Baena is said to have told Valverde, "Cry, because your baby won't be born". Five days earlier, Valverde's girlfriend, Mina Bonino, announced on social media a serious family problem.
At the rematch at the Bernabeu on April 8, Baena "sayed something similar" and made Valverde angry, then assaulted the opponent after the match. After the incident, Baena defended herself on social networks, saying that the information published by the press about his statement was untrue.
Baena is a Spain U21 player, but the country's public opinion is more on Valverde's side in the case. On social networks, many fans think that they will also react like the Uruguayan midfielder when his family is insulted. By nature Valverde is not the type of player who likes to be aggressive or argue with opponents, so he is said to only overreact when there is a serious reason.
