Brazilian soccer player Dani Alves, accused of raping a young woman in Barcelona, will be tried for sexual assault, a legal category that includes rape, the High Court of Catalonia announced today.
A trial date has not yet been set, the court said, adding that the charges against the former Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain player, who has been in prison since January, will be the same as those mentioned in the investigation.
Alves is accused of raping a young woman in a nightclub in Barcelona on December 30 last year.
This 40-year-old man denies guilt, and in an interview last month he pointed out that his “conscience is clear” and that the woman “agreed to have sex”.
He is in a Spanish prison because of a “high risk of flight” to Brazil, which, like many countries, does not extradite its citizens.
Alves has won 43 titles in his career so far, including three Champions Leagues with Barcelona and two Copa Américas with Brazil.
