Former Barcelona and Sevilla defender Dani Alves will stand trial for rape, after a judge approved his case on Tuesday.
Alves, 40, was accused of rape last January for an incident that took place on December 30th in Barcelona last year. He has been in custody since late January of 2023 after the judge refused bail due to the Brazilian being a flight risk.
As per Sport, a judge has given the defence five days to put together their arguments before the trial, which could end in Alves being condemned to between 4 and 12 years in prison, as well as paying damages of €150k.
The most decorated footballer in history has maintained his innocence throughout, but gave four different versions of events when questioned by the police on separate occasions. The incident occurred in a Barcelona nightclub called Sutton, where the victim alleges that Alves forced himself on her in a bathroom. Several weeks later Alves gave himself up for arrest.
