After moving back to Paris Saint-Germain from Spain in the summer of 2021, midfielders Kheira Hamraoui and Aminata Diallo had lots in common.
Both France internationals, they followed the same Muslim faith, stayed in the same hotel in their first few weeks at the Paris club and shared a summer holiday to Tanzania. They were also in the same place at the same time when a brutal attack occurred in Chatou, west of Paris, on November 4, 2021.
On that day, two years ago, the footballers’ lives took very different paths.
On the journey back home from a team dinner, Hamraoui and Diallo were stopped by two masked men. One hit Hamraoui with an iron bar, targeting her legs, and the other held Diallo to the steering wheel.
Lawyer Said Harir holds up images of client Hamraoui’s injuries in November 2021
Reports soon emerged that Diallo was linked to the attack so she could take Hamraoui’s place in the PSG team.
In September 2022, 10 months on, Diallo and five men were arrested and charged with three counts of aggravated assault and criminal conspiracy. According to a police report, Diallo instigated the attack on Hamraoui, her motive being “violent jealousy”.
One man admitted to beating up Hamraoui and another is suspected of pinning Diallo to the steering wheel. The men…
