Football in fear? What Luis Diaz’s family kidnap ordeal means for the beautiful game

The staggering sums of money swilling around the modern game are like targets on the backs of its biggest stars, writes Miguel Delaney. Robberies and kidnappings – often at gunpoint – have become such a threat that teams and players are now taking special precautions, including social media bans, minders and guard dogs

Luis Diaz’s family is the latest victim in a long history of criminals and rebel groups targeting footballers (Action Images via Reuters)

It was a few hours before what should have been a fairly routine Europa League match against Toulouse, and the Liverpool squad were relaxing and conserving energy in their usual pre-match venue of the city’s Titanic Hotel.

The mood soon shifted as the talented and popular left-winger Luis Diaz was called away in serious, hushed tones, and the rest of the players were given the shocking news: the Colombian star’s parents – Cilenis Marulanda and Luis Manuel Diaz – had been abducted in his home country, after being stopped by gunmen on motorbikes.

Diaz, naturally, flew straight back home, where his mother was soon rescued by a police operation in the city of Barrancas. His father remains in captivity, as a guerilla group called “Ejercito de Liberacion Nacional” (ELN) claimed responsibility. They had been in peace talks with the Colombian government.