Xavi forced to apologise over Dani Alves comments

Alves was arrested last week

Barcelona boss Xavi has been forced to apologise for his comments about former teammate Dani Alves. Alves was arrested last week for sexual assault over claims relating to an incident that took place in a Barcelona nightclub in December. The 39-year-old has since been sacked by Mexican side Pumas in wake of the arrest and is currently being detained in a prison just outside of the Catalan city. He has denied any wrongdoing and is likely to appeal to be bailed but could remain in prison for weeks, or even months. Before Barça's game against Getafe, Xavi expressed his shock at the news about his former teammate. During the interview he said that it was a matter of justice and that he felt 'very bad' for the former Brazil international, which led to widespread criticism. However the ex-Spain international has backtracked on his comments and apologised for his 'misinterpreted' words. "What I said about Alves was misinterpreted, perhaps I was not strong enough," he explained. "I ignored the victim, all these acts must be condemned, whether Dani or anyone else does it. I apologise, it was unfortunate. "It is a very tough subject, but I forgot to talk about the victims. All these types of acts must be condemned, both in gender violence and in rapes." During their time at the Camp Nou together, Xavi and Alves won a total of 11 trophies together (five La Liga titles, three Champions League trophies and three Copa del Rey crowns). Related links:

• Dani Alves taken into custody in Spain for alleged sexual assault
• Dani Alves under investigation over alleged claims of sexual assault
• Lionel Messi called ‘sewer rat’ in leaked email from Barcelona employee