The Uruguayan midfielder has been accused of waiting for the Villarreal attacker in the car park and punching him over the weekend, with Baena now filing charges.

Carlo Ancelotti has opened up about Federico Valverde ahead of Real Madrid's highly-anticipated UEFA Champions League clash with Chelsea after reports accusing the Uruguayan of assaulting a Villarreal player emerged.

Los Blancos faced the Yellow Submarine on Saturday and lost 3-2. Valverde has been accused of waiting for opposition player Alex Baena in the car park after the final whistle before punching the 21-year-old winger, sparking controversy.

It should be noted that this alleged assault had nothing to do with the scoreline. Instead, it has been claimed that Baena taunted the Merengues ace about his unborn child over the weekend, an offense he reportedly committed when the two clubs met in January as well.

Federico and his wife had a miscarriage scare earlier this year due to serious pregnancy problems but fortunately, the couple's baby survived. Baena denies taunting the player about his unborn child and has filed charges after being left with bruises and a swollen cheekbone.

Despite these troubles, Valverde was named in Real Madrid's squad for their upcoming UEFA Champions League quarterfinal clash with Chelsea and is in line to start. Speaking ahead of this game, Ancelotti threw his support behind his player, hailing the 24-year-old's character and motivation. Likewise, David Alaba also stood by his teammate ahead of Wednesday's first-leg tie.

"I saw him arrive today motivated like everybody else in the team. He trained properly. I know him very well. Federico has an extraordinary human quality. And about what happened, I don't want to comment, but I'm sure that tomorrow he's going to give it all as usual," the Italian boss said.

It will be interesting to see if Valverde's performance will be affected and what kind of trouble the filed charges will lead to for the South American. As for Real Madrid, they remain focused on the upcoming showdown with Chelsea as the Spanish giants look to secure a first-leg advantage ahead of the trip to Stamford Bridge.