Italy goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma and his girlfriend have been the victims of a robbery at their home in which the pair were tied up, according to multiple French and Italian reports on Thursday night.
The news about the Paris Saint-Germain goalkeeper was first reported by Actu17 and it was later confirmed by AFP. Italian sources like ANSA and La Gazzetta dello Sport have also backed up the shocking reports from the French capital.
The reports claim that several men were involved and they managed to get away with around €500,000 worth of belongings.
Donnarumma takes shelter in nearby hotel
The 24-year-old and his girlfriend managed to reach a nearby hotel after the attackers had fled their home, and that is where they took shelter and notified the authorities of what had happened.
The pair were then taken to hospital to receive additional care and be checked over after the violent ordeal. The investigation of the robbery will be undertaken by the Brigade de repression du banditisme, a division of the Paris Judicial Police.
Footballers can often be targeted in events such as this, and it is particularly common for players at PSG. Marquinhos, Angel Di Maria, Mauro Icardi, Thiago Silva and Sergio Rico have been robbed since arriving at PSG, although Donnarumma’s ordeal seems particularly severe.
When did Donnarumma join PSG?
Gianluigi Donnarumma signed for PSG on a free transfer from AC Milan back in the summer of 2021 when he was tipped to soon become the best goalkeeper in the world. He burst into the first team at an incredibly young age.
At just 16 years and 242 days old when he made his Serie A debut, he became the second youngest goalkeeper to start a match in the history of Italian competitive football. He was hailed by fellow goalkeeper Diego Lopez as the ‘future of Milan and Italian football’.
Having quickly forced himself into the number one position at the Rossoneri, Donnarumma’s time at Milan came to a premature end. He and the club could not agree on a contract extension and it was announced that he would leave the club for free at the end of the 2020/21 season.
This was a major blow for Milan both in a sporting and financial sense, as Donnarumma would have very likely fetched a record fee for a goalkeeper if sold under the right circumstances.
He has now played 72 times for PSG, keeping 23 clean sheets and winning Ligue 1 twice. He has kept his place as Italy’s number-one goalkeeper, playing 54 times for the Azzurri and helping them win the European Championships in 2021.
