Former Fulham, West Ham and Leicester City defender John Paintsil was released on bail Saturday after his arrest over allegations that he stabbed his wife, Ghana's police told AFP.

Police spokesman Freeman Tetty said Paintsil had been arrested on Friday after reportedly assaulting both his wife and a neighbour in their upscale Accra neighbourhood. The footballer spent the night in prison.

"He had a confrontation with his wife and it ended with a blow," Tetty said. "The wife had a deep cut on the upper eyelid. She ran to a neighbour's house and Paintsil also rushed to the neighbour and gave the neighbour a few slaps and threatened to kill the neighbour."

Paintsil was allowed to post bail after police formally notified him that he stands accused of assault and that criminal charges could be filed in the coming days, Tetty further said, without specifying the amount paid in bond.

Paintsil's wife has been released from the hospital, according to the police spokesman.

Paintsil was part of the Ghana 2006 and 2010 World Cup squads and the team that finished fourth this month behind Nigeria, Burkina Faso and Mali at the Africa Cup of Nations in South Africa.