chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel's
father is thought to have been
abducted after he went missing in
Nigeria since Friday. - Stoke 0-0 Chelsea Mikel was informed on Saturday
morning that his father had not
returned home after work on Friday in
the Nigerian city of Jos and had not
been contactable by telephone, and he
has not been seen since. Mikel's manager, John Shittu, told Kick
Off Nigeria: "At the moment we have
not heard from Mikel's father, or
anyone else, so we don't know what it
is. At this point, we only consider him
missing." Mikel played the full 90 minutes for
Chelsea in their 0-0 draw at Stoke on
Sunday but Shittu added: "He is totally
devastated. We were not sure
whether to tell him before the game,
but after speaking to the manager, and [Chelsea technical director] Mike
Emenalo, we agreed that he had a
right to be informed of such a serious
incident. "He was under a lot of stress, but he
showed a lot of character and mental
strength to play against Stoke." Shittu added in a statement to the
BBC: "It's been tough for the young
man. The family in Jos reported him
missing at the police station as
expected but we're taking all necessary
measures to find him. We've told him to be brave and to stay calm." Mikel's representatives, Sport
Entertainment and Media Group, have
said it is an abduction. "SEM confirms that client John Obi
Mikel's father was abducted in Nigeria
on Friday, August 10," a statement
read. "Thus far no ransom [demand]
has been received. Mikel was informed
by his manager prior to the Stoke v Chelsea match and decided to play so
as not to let down his team and family."m.espn.go.com/soccer/story?storyId=944049&leagueTag=ENG.1&lang=EN