Former Manchester United player Ryan Giggs pleaded not guilty on Friday as a court heard allegations he threw his naked ex-girlfriend out of a hotel bedroom after she accused him of flirting with other women.
A Jan. 24 date has already been set for trial, with the former Wales national manager charged with controlling and coercive behaviour, assault occasioning actual bodily harm and assault by beating.
The 33-minute hearing at Manchester Crown Court on Friday, which Giggs was obliged to attend, was for the prosecution to detail the particulars of the coercive and controlling behaviour charge.
Giggs, 47, is accused of deliberately headbutting his ex-girlfriend Kate Greville and common assault of her younger sister Emma.
He was first arrested in the case and released on bail in November last year. He has said he looks forward to clearing his name.
Prosecutor Tim Evans told the court Giggs threatened to send e-mails to Kate Greville's friends and employers about their sexual relationship.
He also threw her belongings out of his house when she asked him about other women.
At a hotel in London, he continued, Giggs allegedly kicked her in the back and threw her out of the bedroom naked "followed by throwing her bag at her when she accused you of flirting with other women."
Giggs was released on conditional bail.
Giggs made 963 appearances over 23 years for Manchester United as a player, a club record, winning a haul of honours including 13 Premier League winner's medals and two UEFA Champions League winner's medals.
He represented Wales as a player 64 times between 1991 and 2007 and took over as national coach in 2018.
A judge said in May that selected trial jurors would have to recognise the case had "nothing to do with football or an allegiance to any team."
(Reporting by Alan Baldwin in London, editing by Christian Radnedge)
