Four masked men with pistols entered the home of Péter Gulácsi, 36, in Puçol early on Tuesday, 13 October 2026, and left in two of his luxury cars after about an hour.
Villarreal said before kickoff that Gulácsi was unavailable due to personal reasons, and Luiz Júnior started in goal against Napoli.
The Government Delegation of the Valencian Community confirmed the incident, and in reports from 14 October the suspects were still at large.
Four masked men carrying pistols entered the house of Villarreal goalkeeper Péter Gulácsi in the early hours of Tuesday, 13 October 2026, according to the Associated Press. The property is in a residential area of Puçol, north of Valencia. Gulácsi, a 36-year-old Hungarian, was at home with his wife and their two children. The robbery lasted about an hour. The intruders threatened the goalkeeper and forced him to hand over valuables kept in a safe, then drove off in two of his luxury cars. The club said nobody was injured, and Blick reported that it was unclear whether the weapons were real or replicas.
Villarreal announced before kickoff that Gulácsi would not play because of "personal reasons". Its later statement pointed to the emotional strain on the goalkeeper. Luiz Júnior started in goal as the Spanish side hosted Napoli in the Champions League league phase that evening. Gulácsi had played the club's last four league matches, including a 1-0 defeat at Real Madrid on Saturday, according to 20 Minutes. He joined Villarreal from RB Leipzig this summer after spending eleven years with the German club, Die Welt reported.
The Government Delegation of the Valencian Community confirmed the incident to the news agency EFE. Police have opened an investigation into the robbery. Authorities said none of the family members was hurt. In reports published on 14 October, the suspects were still at large, and police had not confirmed which items were taken or whether any arrests had been made. Blick said three people had been detained earlier that day in a separate set of break-ins involving Barcelona players, but no arrests in the Gulácsi case had been confirmed.
Adevarul reported that Ettienne Capoue was the target of an attempted robbery at his home in Betera, near Valencia, in February 2024. Die Welt said former Villarreal players Zambo Anguissa and Toko Ekambi had also been targeted in the past. The paper added that neighbouring Valencia had reported raids on its players, including Gabriel Paulista, Geoffrey Kondogbia and Ezequiel Garay. ANSA also noted that Toko Ekambi and Zambo Anguissa had faced similar situations in earlier seasons.
Blick reported that no date has been set for Gulácsi's return to team training. His availability for the Saturday, 17 October league match against Elche, which kicks off at 16:15, is also in doubt. Die Welt said the club hopes its first-choice goalkeeper can process the events quickly. Whether he will be back between the posts in the coming weeks remains unclear.
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Four masked men with pistols entered the Villarreal goalkeeper's home near Valencia in the early hours of Tuesday, 13 October 2026, and nobody was hurt, the club said.
AI text based on reports by adevarul.ro, 20minutes, Blick.ch and other publishers. Changed .