Obi Mikel’s father was kidnapped twice during his spell at Chelsea.
Roman Abramovich offered to “send people” to save John Obi Mikel’s father after he was kidnapped.
The heartbreaking story of Luis Dias’ father getting kidnapped has raised concerns over the safety of football players’ families. Another Premier League player who had to go through a similar situation was Obi Mikel, whose dad got kidnapped twice by Nigerian mobs.
In an interview with talkSPORT, the former Chelsea star revealed he was informed of the second kidnapping just before Nigeria’s World Cup match against Argentina in 2018.
“I didn’t tell anybody. I went on the pitch and I played. Sadly, we didn’t win the game and then after that I told everybody,” the former Super Eagles star said.
“In the dressing room the manager and some of the players were almost in tears. They were saying you should have told us and you shouldn’t have played.”
Obi Mikel also revealed an offer from former Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich to help with releasing his father.
He added: “I remember Roman [Abramovich] saying do you want me to send people over? Because I know if I send people over, I can get your dad out. I was like, how are you going to do this?
“He said don’t worry about that. Just let me, if you want that option, I can do it.”
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