Juventus Back Ronaldo over Rape Allegations

Italian champions Juventus have backed their star forward Cristiano Ronaldo in the wake of a summon being issued for the five-time Ballon d’Or winner over an alleged rape.

Kathryn Mayorga accused the player of sexual assault in her hotel room in 2009 via an interview released last Friday by Der Spiegel.

Las Vegas Police Department (LVPD) have since confirmed that they are reopening the case but Juve, who signed Ronaldo from Real Madrid in the summer for £100m ($128m), have vowed to stand by their player via statements posted on social media.

 “Cristiano Ronaldo has shown in recent months his great professionalism and dedication, which is appreciated by everyone at Juventus,” the Turin giants said via Twitter.

“The events allegedly dating back to almost 10 years ago do not change this opinion, which is shared by anyone who has come into contact with this great champion.”

The statement comes in the way of a denial from the player, who said: “Rape is an abominable crime that goes against everything that I am and believe in.

“Keen as I may be to clear my name, I refuse to feed the media spectacle created by people seeking to promote themselves at my expense.”

Meanwhile, Ronaldo’s lawyer has previously said: “The reporting in Spiegel is blatantly illegal.”

He added that he had been instructed to seek compensation for “moral damages” over “probably one of the most serious violations of personal rights in recent years”.

A statement released from LVPD, reported by the BBC, said: “At the time the report was taken, the victim did not provide detectives with the location of the incident or suspect description.

“As of September 2018, the case has been reopened and our detectives are following up on information being provided.”

Ronaldo missed the club’s midweek 3-0 Champions League encounter against Young Boys after being dismissed in their opening match against Valencia for which he received a one-game ban, but is slated to make a return for the Serie A leaders when they face Udinese in league action today.