“The next Ramos” - Real Madrid midfielder Fede Valverde punches Villarreal’s Baena, sparks social media outrage
Real Madrid fans have reacted online to reports of Federico Valverde punching Villarreal midfielder Alex Baena after their La Liga clash on Saturday, April 8.
Valverde's partner Mina Bonino had a miscarriage scare earlier this year. As per Marca, Baena made a horrible comment about the same to Valverde when Villarreal faced Los Blancos in the Copa del Rey in January. He said:
“Cry now that your son is not going to be born.”
The midfielder then repeated the same during their win over Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu on Saturday (April 8).
This angered Valverde, who waited in the parking lot after the latter game and punched Baena, threatening him to not make crass comments about his family.
The incident has led to a lot of outrage on social media. One Los Blancos fan reminisced about club legend Sergio Ramos, who was known to be aggressive on the pitch and tweeted:
“the new ramos”
Here are some more reactions to Valverde reportedly punching Baena after Real Madrid's clash against Villarreal:
🚨🚨| Fede Valverde said to Baena: "Repeat to me what you said about my son in the pitch" and then punched him. @javiherraez #rmalive
@theMadridZone @abc_es the new ramos 😈
@theMadridZone @abc_es Arrest the thug
@theMadridZone @abc_es I have seen it before https://t.co/NGq9okq3pI
@theMadridZone @abc_es GOAT https://t.co/fhF791z57s
@theMadridZone @javiherraez I speak for everyone when i say deserved
@theMadridZone @javiherraez i speak for everyone when i say valverde owns villareal
After the game, Baena denied making horrible comments against Valverde's family. The Villarreal midfielder posted on his Instagram:
“Very happy with the impressive victory of the team on a stage like the Santiago Bernabéu, 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.”
Carlo Ancelotti on motivating his side as Real Madrid lose to Villarreal
Real Madrid hammered Barcelona 4-0 at Camp Nou in the second leg of the Copa del Rey semi-finals before the game against Villarreal. They progressed to the final with a 4-1 win on aggregate.
Los Blancos will next face Chelsea at home in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals on April 12.
After the 3-2 loss against Villarreal, manager Carlo Ancelotti explained that it can be tough to find motivation for a game sandwiched between two important games. He said (via Managing Madrid):
“It’s hard to prepare for a match that comes in between two other matches that are much more important. I made a lot of rotations because the Barcelona game took a lot out of us physically and mentally.
“It was hard to be 100 percent motivated because the Barcelona game demanded a lot from us emotionally.”
The Real Madrid boss added:
“That’s normal, even though this defeat hurts us. But, this defeat doesn’t change anything about our motivation for the Champions League. Wednesday’s match will be completely different. It’ll be a different story.”
Real Madrid are 12 points behind Barcelona in the La Liga title race, having played one more game. They could fall behind by 15 should the Blaugrana beat Girona at the Spotify Camp Nou on Monday, April 10.