Bendtner sentenced to 50 days in jail for assault

Denmark striker Nicklas Bendtner has been convicted of assaulting a taxi driver and sentenced to 50 days in jail by a city court in Copenhagen, but walked free from the courtroom pending an appeal hearing.

Rosenborg and Denmark striker Nicklas Bendtner Source: Getty Images

The 30-year-old, who plays for Norwegian side Rosenborg, has appealed against the sentence, his lawyer said, and he was released until the hearing in a higher court.

"We think that it's not good for the club and not good for Nicklas, but he remains a player in the club. We are keeping him," Rosenborg CEO Tove Moe Dyrhaug told Reuters.

In surveillance video of the incident in September, Bendtner appears to strike the driver in the face and kick him after a row started over which way the driver was supposed to drive.

Bendtner admitted to hitting the taxi driver in the face but said it was because he felt threatened when the driver threw a bottle or a can towards him and his girlfriend when they left without paying.

Bendtner, who was left out of the Denmark side that reached the knockout stages of the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia, has 81 caps - scoring 30 goals in the process - but has not played a game for the national team since a draw against Chile in March.