AN ex-Man City and Everton star has been hauled off his team bus and arrested after reportedly refusing to pay child support to his ex.

Cops waited for Jô Alves to arrive with his teammates and took him away just moments before a key match in Brazil.

Alves, who plays for lower-league club Amazonas FC, was on his way to a match in Campinas, São Paulo, on Monday.

The 37-year-old was reportedly hauled off the coach and taken to the 10th Police District of Campinas where he was kept overnight.

Local media reports say that forward Alves is accused of failing to pay Maiara Quiderolly - his model ex - child support for their son.

Hours after his arrest, Alves' lawyer Artur Eugenio Matias told reporters: "There was an arrest warrant issued in a city in [the state of] Bahia, for a reasonably small debt.

"According to the lawyer handling the case, the debt has been paid. Jo will go through the IML (Legal Medical Institute) and then go to the prison of the 2nd DP.

"Tomorrow this debt, without any doubt, will be paid, and we hope that he will be released."

Alves's teammates went on to lose 3-0 to rivals Ponte Preta at their home stadium Moises Lucarelli in a third round tie of the Serie B Brazilian Championship.

EX SPEAKS OUT

Influencer Maiara Quiderolly commented under a social media post reporting the news of her ex Alves' arrest, Extra reports.

The footballer and the model are parents of a 16-month-old boy.

"One day for the hunt, another for the hunter", Maiara wrote on an Instagram profile.

The influencer, however, did not state whether the debt was related to her son's pension.

Jô has eight children, two with his current wife, Claudia Silva, and six outside his marriage.

Earlier this year, Maiara opened up about the player's absence in his son's life, saying he missed his first birthday party.

Answering a follower's question on greatest difficulty of being a single mother, she claimed her son is aware that his dad is not around.

She added that her son's pension was overdue.

The influencer said: "I think the biggest difficulty is yet to come, which is when you start asking me questions. For now, none!

"Better this way than a bad example of a father next door. How many children suffer more from the little absence than from the nothing!

"My son is SURE that his father is not present, some are hoping if he will arrive, if he will call, anyway..."

The former Corinthians striker had a DNA test at the end of last year to verify his paternity, according to Extra.

The outcome was positive as the influencer reported at the start of the year.

But Maiara stated that the legal battle against the player is still ongoing.

Maiara's pregnancy was revealed in June 2022, sparking a rift in the athlete's marriage to Claudia Silva, the mother of the player's children.

She even disputed that the child was the consequence of Jô's infidelity, but later acknowledged the paternity.

Jô and Claudia had announced their split, but the couple rekindled the relationship four months later.