Amid rape civil case, Ronaldo asks for space to celebrate goal alone

UDINE, ITALY» Cristiano Ronaldo asked his Juventus teammates to leave him alone.

For all that he’s embroiled in — accused of rape nine years ago — the soccer superstar wanted some space so he could celebrate his goal on Saturday all by himself in front of a TV camera.

He leaped into the air with an emphatic double fist pump, as he’s often marked his goals, and then let his teammates congratulate him.

Ronaldo’s powerful, angled goal, the second of the match and his fourth of the season, was met by applause and boos in the Italian league game at the home of Udinese. Ronaldo and Juventus finished 20 winners.

“Ronaldo had a good game,” Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri said. “He’s been training serenely and tonight he scored an extraordinary goal.”

Just over a week ago, Kathryn Mayorga filed a civil lawsuit in the U.S. saying she was raped by Ronaldo in Las Vegas in 2009. Police have reopened an investigation. Ronaldo has denied the accusation.

He was not available for questions after the match.

Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa, while in Spain, spoke in defense of Ronaldo, appealing to the presumption of innocence.

“People need to understand ... (the) presumption of innocence,” Costa said. “It is not enough for someone to be accused of something to be guilty of it.”