An anonymous complaint of assault has been made against Germany striker Lukas Podolski for striking Michael Ballack in the face during last week’s World Cup qualifier against Wales.
“We received an anonymous complaint on Monday,” Guenther Feld, a senior prosecutor for Cologne, confirmed to German sports agency SID on Tuesday.
Following an argument over tactics, television cameras showed Podolski striking German captain Ballack in the face midway through last Wednesday’s World Cup qualifier in Cardiff against Wales, which Germany won 2-0.
Podolski, who plays for Bayern Munich, later admitted he was “an idiot” for the slap and the German Football Federation (DFB) announced Friday he would pay 5,000 euros (6,628 US dollars) towards a fair play initiative.
But after Monday’s formal complaint by an anonymous party, the incident has become a legal matter and will now be handed to the Munich public prosecutor’s office to be dealt with within the jurisdiction where Podolski lives.
“We have passed the procedure onto the public prosecutor’s office in Munich, which is responsible for the surrounding region,” added Feld.
“But because the game took place in Cardiff, it is now to be handled in the area of Podolski’s place of residence.”
Neither the DFB nor Bayern Munich have commented.
