Man Utd star Cleverley accepts libel damages from Sun

The Sun has apologised and agreed to pay "a substantial sum in damages" to Manchester United footballer Tom Cleverley for falsely accusing him of sending a woman text messages asking for sex.

In a statement read by David Price QC, acting on behalf of Cleverley, the high court in London heard on Wednesday how the Sun had published an articled headed "Man U ace begged me for sex at 5am (even though he's dating)" on 16 August 2011 and on its website.

According to the statement, the article alleged that Cleverley "had met a girl in a Blackpool nightclub and bombarded her with text messages offering her sex".

"Mr Cleverley was then alleged to have taken the girl to a B&B where he introduced her to his bodyguard and did a Google search on his name to demonstrate to her that he was a famous footballer.

"Most seriously, the article then alleged that he repeatedly badgered her for sex, despite her saying no."

It transpired that the man involved was not Cleverley but someone who was impersonating him. Another individual from the same town as the imposter pretended to be Cleverley's bodyguard.

Price said: "The claimant was extremely upset and embarassed by the article. He was not prepared to allow the article to remain unchallenged and therefore brought this claim for libel."

The lawyer added that Cleverley had never met the girl involved and on the night of the alleged incident he was at home with his girlfriend in Manchester.

The amount of damages is still being negotiated with the Sun's publisher,News International subsidiary News Group Newspapers, which will also pay Cleverley's costs.

It is understood that the Sun did not contact Cleverley before publishing the story.

The Sun published an apology in print and online on Wednesday. "An article on 16 August reported that Manchester United footballer Tom Cleverley had begged a girl for sex after meeting her at a nightclub, even though he was dating a Page 3 model.

"In fact, entirely unknown to the girl it now transpires that the man involved, who looked like Tom Cleverley, was impersonating him. We apologise to Mr Cleverley for any embarrassment caused."