Alex Baena considered leaving football after Fede Valverde incident

Villarreal and Spain star Alex Baena has admitted that just months before he lifted Euro 2024 and earned an Olympic Gold medal in the space of a month, he was close to quitting football altogether. Now, he has one of the brightest futures in the Spanish game.

The 23-year-old has six goals and seven assists in 24 appearances this year for the Yellow Submarine, and is coming off a season where he led La Liga for assists. Baena has also become a regular for Spain since his first call-up, and now has eight caps to go with his two gold medals.

Yet it all threatened to be taken away due to an incident with Real Madrid star Fede Valverde. Baena was accused of insulting Valverde’s unborn child – a claim that he has vehemently denied –  and in a second fixture three months later, Baena accused Valverde of assaulting him after the match. Baena had help from a psychologist after the matter.

“I already had a psychologist before what happened, since I arrived in the first team, because I came from playing everything in the youth teams and when I got to the first team and I didn’t play, I didn’t know how to manage it,” he told Relevo.

“The thing with Valverde, these are things that happen, you have to see it in a way that at that moment I didn’t see it, I couldn’t see the light. The media pressure that I had and continue to have as a result of that is very high. But people don’t know me off the pitch and they focus on what happened, what they see on the pitch. It is true that on the pitch I am very different: I am a winner, very competitive, that maybe in certain actions I go over the line, but it is never with malice or to do harm. And off it, I am the opposite: shy, timid, reserved. But people don’t see that, although what matters to me is that my peoople see it.”

Baena has also commented of late that he would be willing to sit down with Valverde to clear the issue up.

🗣️”Few people know this, but 2024 was a hard, hard year. After everything that happened, I was on the verge of leaving it all, of leaving football. There was a moment where my head exploded.”#VillarrealCF star Alex Baena. Via @relevo pic.twitter.com/RN2o2L9Btr

— Football España (@footballespana_) February 27, 2025

“To grow, mature and move forward you must know how to forgive. I know that it is very difficult for that situation to arise, for both of us to agree on what happened, but I would sit down and talk. On my part, everything is fine, I know that it is a very delicate and difficult issue, but for my part there will always be a predisposition to do so.”

Recently Baena was involved in an exchange on Twitter with journalist Albert Ortega, and he was asked what he would say to the people before they send him hateful messages.

“Before writing a comment, think about how they would take it if they were the ones receiving that comment. People get involved, write, hit send and they don’t realise that there are people who have a really hard time with those things. I also believe that it comes a little from journalism, from some newspapers that encourage journalists a lot to create a campaign, not only towards me but other players.”

And admitted that the hatred directed his way, and at his family, nearly drove him into a different life.

“Yes, few of us know this, it has been a tough year, after everything that happened. I was on the verge of giving up everything, of giving up football, there came a time when my head exploded, I didn’t want to continue. It coincided with my call up for the national team, which was when I hit rock bottom. I remember sending a text to my psychologist that I wanted to quit. They all helped me, the call-up for the national team raised my spirits. Also due to coincidences in life, the Bernabeu game was my turning point, as I was injured by a stamp, but that day was when my head clicked.”

Baena turned down an offer from Saudi Arabia in January, noting that it was ‘not the right time’, but is expected to be one of the most coveted talents in Europe this summer.