Real Madrid star Fede Valverde will not face legal action following his alleged assault on Villarreal player Alex Baena, pending an appeal from Baena.
According to El Espanol (via Sport), the judge involved in the case has decided it should be archived due to significant inconsistencies in Baena’s testimony. Reportedly Baena told the police that Alvaro Odriozola was present during the event, something that is not backed up by the video evidence presented by Real Madrid.
Valverde is currently still in danger of being suspended for the start of the season. The Competition Committee have been recommended that Valverde be suspended for five matches, but have not yet passed a sentence. However this will no doubt help in Valverde and Real Madrid’s bid to reduce the consequences.
The information says that Villarreal were also misinformed about the incident, presumably by Baena claiming that Valverde had admitted the incident to the police – that turned out not to be the case.
Equally, there is inconsistency in the version offered by El Espanol. Odriozola, despite not being there according to the camera evidence, testified that it had only been a verbal conflict, rather than a physical altercation. It appears there is little clarity in any of the versions offered to the courts.
Valverde is yet to comment on the incident publicly, while Baena has denied rumours that he provoked an assault with comments about the Uruguayan’s family.
