Former Manchester United defender, Chris Smalling held by armed robbers at gunpoint along with his wife and son inside their home in Italy

Former Manchester United defender, Chris Smalling has been robbed at his home in front of his wife and two-year-old child in Italy. 

Italian news outlet Gazzetta dello Sport reported that three armed robbers broke into Smalling’s home on Friday morning, April 16, and forced the footballer, currently at Italian club Roma, to open his family’s safe, where the aggressors took items of jewellery and other valuable items. 

Smalling’s wife, Sam, is said to have called the police just before 5am and officers arrived at the family’s villa, located around 25 miles south of Rome, with the trio very distressed.

The same report claims police are still investigating the incident and Roma have offered  support to the player.

Smalling, who joined the Italian club from Manchester United on a permanent deal last year, missed Roma’s Europa League tie with Ajax at the Stadio Olimpico on Thursday night due to a knee injury. 

The defender has been playing in Rome since the summer of 2019, after joining the club on an initial loan deal before making the move permanent 12 months later.