08 November 2023 , 17:25
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Former Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel has opened up on how the Blues' then-owner Roman Abramovich offered to help out personally after his father was kidnapped in 2018.
The Nigeria international was preparing for a World Cup game against Argentina when he learned of the kidnapping. His father had previously been held for 10 days in 2011 before being released.
Mikel was speaking in the light of the kidnapping of Luis Diaz's parents in Colombia. The Liverpool forward's mother was released within 24 hours, but negotiations are still ongoing with regards to the safe return of the former Porto star's father.
“Two hours before the game I got a phone call from my brother saying that my dad has been kidnapped for the second time in Nigeria," Mikel told talkSPORT. “He was kidnapped for the first time and I spoke to the kidnappers and they demanded lots of money from me, which I did eventually pay before my dad got released.
“But the second time happened while I was playing for my country and I got this phone call from my brother saying that dad has been kidnapped again for the second time. That was absolutely shocking. The first time was shocking, but the second time was even more shocking because I was about to go into one of the biggest games of my life."
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The footballer's father, Pa Michael Obi, was eventually released after a week. His son didn't tell any of his Nigeria team-mates before the Argentina game, captaining the side and playing the full 90 minutes as Nigeria suffered a late defeat and dropped out of the World Cup at their opponents' expense.
John Obi Mikel captained Nigeria after learning about his father's kidnapping (Getty Images)Mikel said he could sympathise with Liverpool star Diaz, given what happened in his own past. The Reds star sat out two matches after the news about his parents broke, but returned against Luton and called for the release of his father after scoring Liverpool's last-minute equaliser.
Liverpool have been providing support to their player, with manager Jurgen Klopp among those to call for Diaz's father's release. And the same was true of Chelsea - in particular their long-time owner Abramovich - back in 2018.
"Chelsea were very supportive," Mikel continued. "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. And I'm happy to see that Liverpool are very supportive. I must give credit to Liverpool for what they're doing."
In the light of Diaz's equaliser at Luton, Klopp was asked about the importance of the winger finding the net. Diaz had asked to return to training ahead of the game, but the manager decided to put the on-field outcome into a wider perspective.
"A wonderful moment but it doesn't change the situation," Klopp told Sky Sports. "Most important thing is that his father gets released.
"It is wonderful he wanted to be here. That's it, for us a super important goal and for him very important and yes very emotional, but that's it."