Mikel pleas for kidnapped father

Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel has appeared on television to plea for the release of his kidnapped father.

Michael Obi, who runs an interstate transport company in the city of Jos in Nigeria, has been missing since Friday when he failed to return home from work, and the player’s representatives have confirmed that he has been abducted.

Mikel told Sky Sports News: “All I can say is I’m from Nigeria, and I’ve always tried to help the country in every way that I can, playing for the country, serving the country any way that I can and I think it is time for the country to help me in this situation.”

“I’m just going to say whoever has got my dad, whoever knows where my dad is should try to contact me and let me know where my dad is.”

“We haven’t had anything yet, for the last few days, no phone calls, nothing. My dad’s phone is not going through at the moment.”

“I really don’t have an idea of who has taken my dad away. I think this happens a lot, not in the northern part of Nigeria but it happens a lot in the eastern part. But I think my dad will probably be the first in the northern part.”

“I would like to go and see what’s happening and speak to my mum and see my mum and speak to my other brothers and sisters as well. But at this point I have to stay back and we’ll see what happens, if in the next 24 hours we’re going to get any information as to where he is and what’s happening to him. Then we can know what to do and how to act from there.”

“I just want to say to whoever has got my dad to please just let him go. He’s an old man and he hasn’t done any harm to anyone as far as I know.”

“I don’t know why he has been taken and my family, my mum especially, is very sad and devastated about the whole situation. I just hope in the next 24 hours we can get something out of it.”

Mikel revealed he had known about the kidnapping before Saturday’s English Premier League match against Stoke on Sunday but still decided to play.

“I don’t really think my team-mates know about it,” he said.

“Then after that I thought they should have known but up until now they haven’t known but I think tomorrow everyone will know, by then they will try to speak to me about it as well.”