- One of the Premier League's top scorers was almost blinded by acid
- Her alleged attacker is on trial and could face 30 years in prison if convicted.
- LISTEN NOW: It's all starting! Ruben Amorim seems desperate… it is the last resort to publicly denounce your players
Brentford star Yoane Wissa will appear in court this week for the trial of a woman who allegedly nearly blinded him in an acid attack in France.
Wissa suffered severe burns to his face and eyes in July 2021 and had to undergo eye surgery before joining Brentford from Lorient a month later.
Reports in France at the time said that a woman had approached Wissa at his home on July 1, 2021, seeking an autograph and returned later that night to spray him with a corrosive liquid.
A court in Vannes, near Lorient, learned that the woman was trying to kidnap the striker's newborn daughter.
She is also accused of kidnapping another woman's daughter the next day, although the girl was later found unharmed.
If convicted, the woman, known as Laetitia P, faces up to three decades behind bars for attempted murder, child abduction and attempted kidnapping.
Yoane Wissa attends court after a woman allegedly nearly blinded him in an acid attack in 2021, and some of the damage to his face is shown here shortly after the alleged attack.
Wissa was weeks away from joining Brentford and has become one of their main stars.
He scored his first Premier League goal just weeks after the attack, celebrating with a meditation pose.
On July 14, 2021, Wissa posted a photo showing some of the damage to his face with the message: 'God is great.
'Thank you for all your messages of support, they go straight to my heart. “I'm better, we are working for a good recovery.”
Wissa recovered well and in September 2021 scored his first goal for Brentford in the late equalizer against Liverpool, celebrating with a meditative gesture.
Since then he has established himself as one of the London club's best players and has scored 11 goals in 18 Premier League games this season, one of the best records in the division.
His lawyer, Karim Morand-Lahouazi, said: “Yoane is still suffering from the aftermath of this attempted kidnapping and attack.
'He has done everything he can since then to prove that he is okay.
'He is also trying to perform as well as he can in his daily work.
And today he and his wife feel safe in England. They feel safe from danger.
He was still registered with French club Lorient when the alleged 2021 attack took place.
'Fortunately she did not lose her sight, and it was only thanks to her reaction that her daughter was not taken away.
“They took him off work for 10 days, but he doesn't just return to training on the 11th.
'He needed considerable time to recover. Things were not easy for him at the beginning of this matter.
“He will attend the trial in two days.”