Arsenal stars Mesut Ozil and Sead Kolasinac targeted by armed moped thieves

Arsenal stars Mesut Ozil and Sead Kolasinac have said they are “fine” after the pair were targeted by knife-wielding thieves on mopeds.

The footballers were approached outside Kolasinac’s house as the masked attackers tried to steal a watch, and many fans have praised the defender after CCTV footage showed him confronting them.

Kolasinac, who goes by the nickname “the Hulk” in his native Bosnia and Herzegovina, has since tweeted a picture of him and German midfielder Ozil sharing a joke, along with the caption: “Think we’re fine.”

Ozil also told Sky News they were “all good”.

The two players ended up pursued through north London early on Thursday evening, and when Ozil’s black Mercedes G-Class 4×4 came to a stop, the robbers tried to smash the windows with stones and a brick.

Ozil left the gold-trimmed vehicle in the middle of the road and ducked into a Turkish restaurant called Likya.

Waiters and chefs came to his aid and chased the attackers away.

Ozil told Sky News that he, his wife and Kolasinac are “all good” following the attack.

When asked if it was a scary experience, he said: “It was different, but it’s OK now.”

Yasmin Tahsiner, the joint owner of Likya, told Sky News that the two footballers are regular customers – and said they had been pursued for “10 or 15 minutes”.

She said Ozil called her business partner and asked them call the police because they were being followed and attacked by two individuals carrying weapons.

A witness said Ozil “looked absolutely terrified” and appeared to be “running for his life”.

Azuka Alintah, 36, who lives nearby, said it was “totally mad and strange”.

He told the Daily Mail that he saw Ozil “disappear into the restaurant with the motorcycle guys on his tail”.

He added: “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. The police were there shortly afterwards and the road was almost blocked off.”

Both players were unharmed, Arsenal confirmed.

The club are treating it as a “private matter” and say it does not affect the players’ pre-season training.

Scotland Yard said police were called to Platts Lane, NW3, shortly before 5pm on Thursday.

The force said: “It was reported that suspects on motorbikes had attempted to rob a man who was driving a car.

“The driver, along with his passenger, managed to get away unharmed and travelled to a restaurant in Golders Green, where they were spoken to by officers.

“There have been no arrests. Enquiries continue.”

(c) Sky News 2019: Arsenal stars Mesut Ozil and Sead Kolasinac targeted by armed moped thieves