Gabriel fights off baseball bat-wielding robbers at his home

Gabriel fought off muggers
Gabriel fought off muggers / Ryan Pierse/GettyImages
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Arsenal centre-back Gabriel Magalhaes managed to fight off robbers who were wielding baseball bats at his home after he was attacked by two men in August.

Gabriel was on a night out with a friend earlier this year but was tracked home by two robbers, who approached him and demanded his wallet, phone and keys to his £45,000 Mercedes as he got out of the car.

As shown in CCTV footage seen by the Daily Mail, Gabriel was having absolutely none of it.

When he refused to comply, one of the attackers, Abderaham Muse, charged at him with the baseball bat, at which point Gabriel punched him in the face and began wrestling with him, eventually ripping off the attacker's mask.

The centre-back eventually lost his grip and Muse and his accomplice both scampered from the scene, but DNA evidence has linked him to the crime and Muse was jailed for five years last month.

Martin Lewis, prosecuting, told Harrow Crown Court: "No injuries were suffered but a great deal of shock was caused. They happened to pick on two victims who were very fit and able to look after themselves."

Muse was on license when he attacked Gabriel, having previously been given a 56-month sentence for possession and intent to supply heroin.

Judge Anupama Thompson told the defendant: "While you didn’t specifically target the victim on account of him being a well-known footballer, there was a realisation this person was wealthy and worthy of robbing.

"You have an appalling record for a man of 26. This was an horrific and frightening attack on a group of people who were simply coming home from a night out."

It's a situation which brings back memories of fellow Arsenal man Sead Kolasinac's clash with muggers in 2019.

Kolasinac was with former team-mate Mesut Ozil when the pair were targeted by two robbers looking to steal their watches, but the defender started throwing hands immediately and managed to scare the pair off.