There has been a recent spike in home break-ins targeting Premier League player, leading to some of them resorting to hiring private security firms which entail the use of former special forces soldiers.
Back in December, Manchester City left-back revealed on social media that his house was the target of a break in, as his whole family was at home.
Not having any of it, Cancelo fought back against the thieves, and was left with a cut above his eye, as the thieves assaulted him and stole all his jewellery, leaving him and his family in distress.
Just last week, Manchester United defender Victor Lindelof also went through a similar ordeal, as his house was broken into while he was away at a game with the team. His family was in the home at the time of the incident.
Lindelof’s wife, Maja Nilsson Lindelof, revealed that she and her two young kids had to hide away in the house, and they later flew back to Sweden to recover, with the United centre back joining them and missing the weekend victory over West Ham.
According to the Daily Mail, clubs in the region have now started group chats discussing the problem and sharing information to help safeguard their players.
And some players have even turned to hiring private security firms to keep them and their families safe, which means the use of former SAS soldiers to provide security, especially whilst they’re away at matches. “It’s not a new issue, but it is something that has intensified recently,” a source told the Mail.
“Most of the players are bringing in trained dogs but in some cases they want a physical, human presence in the house and so they are turning to a lot of firms who use guys who are ex-special forces.”
The attack on Lindelof’s house was the second incident when her husband was playing football that left Maja Nilsson worried, after the centre back had chest problems during a game with Norwich.
The 27-year-old had to be fitted with a heart monitor for two days but he has not had a recurrence of the issue since, which was said to not be connected with the club’s recent Covid-19 outbreak that saw the delay of some games.
Several years ago, similar incidents affected Everton and Liverpool players, including former Liverpool player Steven Gerrard. Footballers and managers make especially easy targets as their whereabouts are basically public information.