[goldenHuddlestone]

French soccer player who used to belong to first division club AJ Auxerre has been arrested in Rome on suspicion of sexually assaulting an American student in a nightclub, Italian police said on Wednesday. The victim, a student from Temple University in the United States who was in Rome studying ancient art, was attacked in a lavatory in a nightclub near Piazza Navona, a square popular with tourists in the historic centre, police said.

The chief investigating officer, Alberto Intini, told reporters that 20-year-old striker Garra Dembele, who was born in a Paris suburb and has Malian origins, was in Italy to try out for local clubs. Dembele was arrested while about to board a train in Romes Termini train station shortly after the attack on Monday night, Intini said. "Dembele is in police custody on suspicion of aggravated sexual assault," Intini told the news conference.

Intini said Dembele did not deny being at the club and meeting the woman. "He denies having behaved violently towards her, saying also that he doesnt remember well because he had been drinking," the policeman said. The French club said Dembele left Auxerre at the end of last season and had never played for its first team. Earlier Italian police had said he was still with Auxerre.

Dembele has already tried out for Serie A squad Lazio, which is based in Rome, and had planned to do the same with the Treviso and Perugia teams, Intini said. Dembele and the victim met at the Supper Club, an exclusive nightclub popular with foreigners, Intini said.