Former Wales manager and Manchester United footballer, Ryan Giggs, arrived at court in Manchester on Monday as he stands trial for domestic violence.
Prosecutor Peter Wright told the jury at Minshull Street Crown Court in Manchester that while Giggs’ soccer skills were a thing of beauty, his off-field life was very different.
“In the privacy of his own personal life at home or behind closed doors, there was, we say the facts reveal, a much uglier and more sinister side to his character,’’ Wright told the jury. “This was a private life that involved a litany of abuse, both physical and psychological, of a woman he professed to love.”
The 48-year-old Giggs is accused of assaulting Kate Greville, 36, and causing actual bodily harm at his home in Worsley, greater Manchester in November 2020. He is also charged with common assault of Greville’s younger sister during the same incident, as well as using controlling and coercive behavior toward his former girlfriend between August 2017 and November 2020.
The court heard how Giggs “entirely lost self-control and he deliberately head-butted Kate, thereby causing swelling to her lips and bruising.”
Giggs has denied all of the charges. He stood down as manager of the Wales national team in June, saying he didn’t want to jeopardize preparations for the World Cup later this year in Qatar. He had been on leave since November.
The 48-year-old is the most decorated player in history of English football, having helped United to thirteen Premier League titles and two Champions Leagues trophies, before hanging up his boots in 2014.
He officially stepped down as Wales boss in June. His replacement, Robert Page, has led Wales to their first World Cup in sixty-four years and will take charge in Qatar later this year.
The trial, which had been delayed amid a backlog of court cases caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, is expected to last up to ten days.
