Football stars in carjacking terror
Arsenal player jumps out of 4x4 to tackle biker knife gang
‘Running for his life’
TWO top football stars were attacked by knife- wielding motorcycle thieves yesterday in an apparent carjacking.
Arsenal players Mesut Ozil and Sead Kolasinac were cornered by the thugs after a terrifying high- speed chase in north London.
Boxed in by the raiders, 30-year-old Ozil was forced to abandon his £100,000 Mercedes G-Class 4x4 in the middle of the road before fleeing to the safety of a nearby restaurant.
But teammate Kolasinac, 26, leapt from the passenger seat to take on the criminals with his bare hands.
CCTV footage shows the defender – nicknamed ‘The Bosnian Hulk’ – bravely face the carjackers, who quickly fled.
Waiters and chefs from the restaurant also rushed out on to the street to help chase away the armed robbers.
The two motorbike raiders, who were clad all in black and kept their helmets on, struck at around 5pm in Golders Green Road, north London.
Police were on the scene within minutes, questioning £350,000a-week midfielder Ozil outside the Turkish restaurant, Likya.
Ozil, who is a German national of Turkish origin, is a familiar face in the restaurant.
Financial worker Azuka Alintah, 36, who lives nearby, told MailOnline: ‘It was totally mad and strange. His [Ozil’s] car was standing there empty in the middle of the road with its door hanging open.
‘It is very distinctive, with gold trim. Ozil looked absolutely terrified, as anybody would after being chased by men with knives. He looked like he was running for his life. And I suppose he was.
‘I saw him disappear into the restaurant with the motorcycle guys on his tail. They didn’t take off their helmets and were all in black, wearing long sleeved tops in this hot weather. They stood out. It was really creepy.
‘God knows what would have happened if they’d caught him.
It looked to me like he’d have been hacked to shreds and he clearly thought so too. ‘As soon as the restaurant staff started to come to the window and to the doorway, they turned around and roared off.’ He added: ‘It was totally surreal, just surreal and strange. You don’t expect something like that to happen at any time, particularly the mid-afternoon.’
Neither footballer was injured in the incident. A Metropolitan Police spokesman said there have been no arrests so far and an investigation continues.
An Arsenal spokesman confirmed the Premier League players were involved in attempted carjacking, adding: ‘We have been in contact with both players and they are fine.’
Ozil is the latest high-profile victim of knife-wielding bike gangs in London. Last month Strictly star Pasha Kovalev was robbed by moped thieves while standing outside a theatre.
The robbers reportedly rode on to the pavement and snatched his phone.
Pasha, 39, was unhurt but upset he lost the mobile, which had photos of his pregnant girlfriend, Countdown host Rachel Riley, 33. In June last year, comedian Michael McIntyre was forced to hand over his £15,000 Rolex watch by an armed gang.