Makelele cleared of assault

Versailles - Former Real Madrid and Chelsea star Claude Makelele was cleared by a French court on Thursday of assaulting his British ex-girlfriend.

Thandi Ojeer, an events organiser who had a two-year-relationship with the midfielder, had accused him of punching her in the face during a dispute at the home they once shared in the Paris suburbs.

Prosecutors had asked for the former France international to be given a five-month suspended prison sentence.

But a judge on Thursday dismissed Ojeer's case and her claim for 90,000 euros compensation and ordered her to pay 2,000 euros for bringing an unsubstantiated civil claim to court.

Ojeer had alleged that Makelele had assaulted her in October 2010 when she returned to their flat to collect clothes and other belongings, four months after the former player had abruptly ended their relationship.

Makelele's lawyer confirmed during a trial in June that there had been a dispute but said his client had used legitimate force to defend himself.