POLICE are investigating an allegation that football star Jonathan Woodgate punched a teenage drinker in the face.

The 18-year-old has made a signed statement to officers claiming that the £9m Newcastle United and England player assaulted him.

Woodgate strenuously denies hitting Anthony Strange as he was leaving the toilets of the Dickens Inn in his hometown of Middlesbrough.

The 23-year-old defender said: "I'm perfectly happy to co-operate with the police in any way they wish. I have nothing to hide. I've done nothing wrong."

A spokesman for Cleveland Police last night confirmed it was investigating an allegation of assault at the pub.

Mr Strange, a student, alleged that he "wound up" Woodgate as the two bumped into each other in the pub toilets at about 4pm on Tuesday.

The Middlesbrough fan told police he made a few "daft" comments to Woodgate over his much publicised big money transfer from Leeds United to St James Park earlier this year.

It is understood that Mr Strange, who was drinking with a friend, stayed in the pub until later that night when he said he became concerned about an injury to his face.

He went to Middlesbrough General Hospital for treatment but was found to have just bruising. He then reported the alleged attack to police.

Mr Strange said: "I just said to Woodgate, 'You should have signed for the Boro - they're a better team'. I was just winding him up. It was just a laugh, just a daft joke."

Newcastle United Football Club declined to comment, but Woodgate's agents, SFX Sports Group, insisted the allegation "has no foundation whatsoever".

A spokesman said: "There are people who continue to make mischief for Jonathan but all he is concerned about is making a substantial contribution to the success of his career at Newcastle United."

A barmaid working at the Southfield Road pub on the day of the alleged attack said she had seen no sign of trouble.

She said Woodgate was not a regular but she had seen him in the pub "now and again".

He had been in the pub with a group of friends, none of whom were footballers, and she had seen him drink three or four bottles of alcopops.

The woman, who did not wish to be named, added: "He doesn't drink that much. He didn't seem to cause any trouble. We didn't hear anything."

Woodgate was cleared of a charge of grievous bodily harm but was convicted of affray in connection with an attack on an Asian student in Leeds city centre in 2000.

He was ordered to carry out 100 hours' community service, mainly sweeping parks and painting fences at public buildings in Middlesbrough. He was also fined eight weeks' wages - £112,000 - by Leeds United chiefs.

Woodgate then set about putting his career back on track.

But in April last year he was taken to hospital with a fractured cheekbone - suffered in "horseplay" with a friend, outside the Dickens Inn, Middlesbrough.

Woodgate, who is single, still drinks with his friends in Middlesbrough, where he was born and raised. He now has a home on Tyneside where he is nearer to teammate and close friend Keiron Dyer.

* The claim comes only days after it was revealed that fellow Newcastle United star Craig Bellamy is to appear in court later this summer charged with a public order offence arising from an alleged racist incident in Cardiff