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Footballer jailed over horrific sex attack on sleeping woman
The Airdrie forward stripped to his boxers in bed and touched the woman inappropriately. Kouider-Aïssa claimed that he went into the bed to “get a good sleep” and believed the woman was awake.
The victim told a jury about the horrific attack hours before Kouider-Aïssa was named in the Airdrie squad for their crunch promotion play-off match against Hamilton Accies in May.
The club sacked Kouider-Aïssa after he was convicted at Glasgow Sheriff Court for sexual assault.
Sheriff Matthew Jackson KC said: “Prior to this conviction you held a position that many can only dream of.
“That position, status and reward is now lost to you and you recognise that.
“These are lost to you because of the decision you took that morning.
“I recognise your defence has been eloquently put by your lawyer that you were someone who had the reasonable belief she was consenting.
“That defence was rejected by the jury and it is not difficult to understand why.
“She woke up to find herself being sexually assaulted by a man she barely knew in a horrific fashion.
“You stand convicted of this horrible serious offence.
“I’m satisfied there is not alternative to a custodial sentence.”
The first offender, of Kirkintilloch, was also put on the sex offenders register for 10 years. The woman told the court that she met Kouider-Aïssa at a friend’s flat after a night out.
She went to a spare bedroom alone at 5am with Kouider-Aïssa warned by a friend to stay in the living room.
Prosecutor Mark Allan asked the woman for her next memory.
She said: “I woke up and I could feel someone behind me, that’s when I realised what he was doing.”
Mr Allan asked who was behind her.
She replied: “Salim.”
The woman described that Kouider-Aïssa intimately touched her.
She added: “I woke up really shocked, I went into bed myself and was shocked to have someone behind me.
“I was shouting ‘what are you doing’ and he said ‘I thought you were awake, what have I done’.
“It wouldn’t matter if I was as there was no consent.”
The woman added that Kouider-Aïssa “knew he was going to get himself into so much trouble.”
She stated that Kouider-Aïssa left the flat and that she phoned the police around lunchtime to report the matter.
Mr Allan asked how that morning made her feel for the days and months that followed.
The woman replied: “Horrendous, so anxious about everything, it is so horrible that someone could do that to you.”
Kouider-Aïssa told jurors in his evidence that he was not able to get comfortable sleeping on the couch.
He stated that he went into the bed “to get a good sleep” and lay beside her.
Kouider-Aïssa claimed he removed his clothes as he was hot during the night.
He admitted rubbing the woman’s leg and kissing her neck.
The footballer added that he went on to carry out a sex act on her stating: “I had belief she was consenting by the way she was moving about the bed, moving her body to me.”
Kouider-Aïssa now believes the woman was asleep due to hearing her evidence through the criminal process.
After the woman confronted him in bed, Kouider-Aïssa told a friend: “I’ve f***ed it, I thought she was awake.”
Mr Allan asked: “There is one easy way to make sure she was awake isn’t there?”
Kouider-Aïssa: “I suppose so.”
Mr Allan: “You didn’t ask her if she was awake during any of this?”
Kouider-Aïssa: “No.”
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Kouider-Aïssa was escorted out of the flat and was picked up by team mate Max Currie who took them to training.
The attacker then handed himself into police later that day after watching a football match with his uncle.
Graeme Brown, defending, told the sentencing: “His profession as a professional football player was terminated upon his conviction.
“Because of this conviction, it will be extremely unlikely that he will be able to play football at that level again.”
News
RON ON HIS WAY! Ronaldo Makes New Portgual Decision After Red Card Nightmare
Cristiano Ronaldo has LEFT the Portugal camp after his shocking red card in their defeat against Ireland.
The Portuguese icon was dismissed in his nation’s 2-0 defeat to the Republic of Ireland earlier this week.
Ronaldo was given his marching orders for an alleged elbow on Ireland defender Dara O’Shea. He was initially awarded a yellow card, only for VAR to intervene before the referee upgraded the punishment.
Ronaldo has now been handed a one-match automatic ban for the red card, which will see him miss Portugal’s clash with Armenia on Sunday. And according to reports in Portugal, he has now been released from international duty.
The 40-year-old will now return to Saudi Arabia ahead of making his return to action with club side Al-Nassr, who take on Al-Khaleej next weekend. Speaking after Ronaldo’s red card, Portugal boss Roberto Martinez said: “The red card is just a captain that has never been sent off before in 226 games – I think that just deserves credit – and today, I thought it was a bit harsh because he cares about the team.
“He was 60 minutes or 58 minutes in the box being grabbed, being pulled, being pushed and obviously when he tries to get away from the defender.
“I think the action looks worse than what it actually is, I don’t think it’s an elbow, I think it’s a full body, but from where the camera is, it looks like an elbow. But we accept it.
“The only thing that leaves a bitter taste in my mouth is at the press conference yesterday, your coach was talking about the aspect of the referees being influenced, and then a big centre-half falls on the floor so dramatically at the turn of Cristiano’s body.”
Meanwhile, Ireland boss Heimir Hallgrímsson said: “He complimented me for putting pressure on the referee. It was his action on the pitch that cost him the red card. It had nothing to do with me – unless I got into his head.”
News
Oscar Health Update Emerges After Ex-Chelsea Star Collapsed
A health update has been provided on the former Chelsea midfielder, Oscar, after he collapsed and was admitted to the ICU earlier this week.
The Brazilian star fell unconscious during a training session and has remained under observation
Oscar, 34, was conducting an interval test on an exercise bike at Sao Paulo’s training ground when he fell ill. Brazilian outlet Global Esporte reported that he was unconscious for two minutes. The issue comes after Oscar suffered a fractured vertebra in August.
Since then, Oscar has made the bench twice, but it has been claimed that he has been monitoring a heart issue after he showed signs of an abnormality during tests on his fracture.
In a statement on Tuesday, Sao Paulo said Oscar ‘presented an incident with cardiological changes’ and was ‘promptly attended to by the club’s professionals and the medical team from Einstein Hospital Israelita. They have now offered another update and have confirmed a diagnosis of vasovagal syncope.
“Midfielder Oscar remains hospitalised at Einstein Hospital Israelita, where he was admitted on Tuesday afternoon (11) after presenting an incident with cardiological changes during tests carried out at SuperCT.
“An extensive investigation carried out at the hospital confirmed the diagnosis of vasovagal syncope. Oscar remains clinically well and stable, hospitalised in a cardiology unit and will undergo an electrophysiological study this Friday.”
The condition causes a sudden drop in heart rate and blood pressure. This can reduce blood flow to the brain and cause an individual to briefly lose consciousness. Vasovagal syncope can occur when the body overreacts to heat, hunger, or emotional distress.
Oscar returned to Sao Paulo in December on a three-year deal after beginning his career with the Brazilian side. The attacker’s reputation grew in his spell with Chelsea as he won two Premier League titles.
News
Thomas Tuchel Breaks Silence On England Records
Thomas Tuchel said he has not spoken to England’s players about any potential records they could set in Albania as his only focus is on the hunger to compete and kick on towards the World Cup.
Gareth Southgate’s successor began his reign with March’s 2-0 Wembley win against Albania and ends his first year in charge against the same opponents in Tirana on Sunday.
England arrive in Albania having followed up last month’s early World Cup qualification by winning a seventh Group K match without conceding — an impressive record that opposition manager Sylvinho joked was “disgusting.”
Sunday offers them the chance to become the first European side to play at least six World Cup qualifiers and win them all without conceding, but that could not be further from Tuchel’s mind.
“We didn’t speak a single word about that,” he said at Air Albania Stadium on the eve of the game.
“We made sure yesterday that we had yesterday the training session that we had. The quality and the mentality of the guys that didn’t play was on the highest level, which was a pure pleasure.
“It just showed me that we are going in the right way.
“Everyone is ready to play, everyone is ready to start. Competition is still on, the hunger is still on to be on the pitch tomorrow. That is the most important.
“Everything we talk about is about the process and the things we can influence. We need to get the foundation right to have a chance to get these records.
“Just by thinking about it or talking about it, nothing will change.
“We need to deliver tomorrow again and, like I said, the feeling and the trust is absolutely there because I witness this in the camp so I trust my players to perform again tomorrow.”
England arrived in Albania with a 23-man squad after Ezri Konsa withdrew from the camp with a calf complaint.
That means there will be at least one change from Thursday’s 2-0 win against Serbia, when Jude Bellingham, Eberechi Eze and Phil Foden impressed off the bench.
The latter was deployed in a false nine role having replaced captain Harry Kane but Tuchel says he is unlikely to go into next summer’s World Cup with just one out-and-out striker.
“No, I don’t think so,” he said when that was mentioned. “It is possible but I don’t think that will happen. There is still a long way to go.
“We will go with a very balanced squad, I guess this as I’ve never picked a World Cup squad.
“This is something for between March and May but the general idea is to pick a balanced squad with different characters and qualities.
“I cannot rule out going with just one striker but it is very likely we will have more classic number nines.”
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