The former Barcelona, Sevilla, Juventus and Paris Saint-Germain right-back, through a spokesperson, said he "vehemently denies" all allegations.

Catalonia's Supreme Court confirmed, via a spokesperson to Reuters, that Alves was the subject of a complaint "for an alleged crime of sexual assault as a result of the complaint filed by a woman for events that allegedly occurred in a nightclub in Barcelona last month".

They said the case was under investigation and there was no more information available for now.

Media outlets in Spain had reported of a woman accusing the 39-year-old touching her beneath her underwear without her consent when clubbing late last month in the Catalonian city.

In an interview with Antena 3 last week, Alves denied the allegations.

"I was dancing and having a good time without invading anyone’s space," he said.

"I don't know who this lady is.

"How could I do that to a woman? No."

Alves is regarded as one of his country's greatest defenders in its history, having represented the senior men's national team on 126 occasions.

Only fellow right-back Cafu has more, with 142.

He has acted as captain of the national team in absence of his fellow defender, Thiago Silva.

Alves has also won the most professional trophies in football history, with 42 - a record he now shares with Argentina's Lionel Messi.