Prosecutors in Dakar are demanding a jail sentence for Diouf

Diouf is alleged to have punched the ex-wife of team-mate Khalilou Fadiga in a Dakar night club in July.

Aichatou Ba has accused the player of beating her up and claims the incident left her unfit to work for 25 days.

"He (Diouf) physically assaulted my client and the prosecutor has demanded a six-month jail sentence," Ba's lawyer Doudou Ndoye said.

Diouf was not represented when the civil case was heard on Tuesday in a Dakar court which is expected to rule on the case on 20 December.

Under Senegal's legal system, a prosecutor acts even in civil cases.

Ndoye said a six-month sentence could rule Diouf out of the African Nations Cup tournament in Egypt which starts in January.

Unusually for a plaintiff's lawyer, he said he thought the prosecutor's demand for a jail term was too harsh.

"I personally think he does not deserve to go to jail but he needs a good lesson. You don't beat a woman," Ndoye said.

On Thursday, a British court banned Diouf from driving for 12 months after he was found guilty of a drink-driving offence.

The 24-year-old striker had been out drinking champagne to celebrate an English Premier League win, the court heard.

Last month a British court fined Diouf $872 after he admitted a charge of disorderly conduct for spitting at a fan during a Premier League match a year ago.