DAVID GOLD last night spoke of his terrifying brush with death at the hands of two ‘Villa monsters’
West Ham’s co-owner, 73, endured the ‘most frightening experience of my football life’ as he left Villa Park following the Hammers’ 3-0 defeat on Saturday.
His Rolls Royce Phantom pulled up at a red light beside the King Edward VII pub, a favourite with Villa fans.
What followed was a nightmare of ‘epic proportions’ that has left him reviewing his personal security.
He said: “People were outside the pub and there was some good-natured banter when, suddenly, the whole thing turned horribly sinister and even life-threatening.
“Two guys who can only be described as monsters – animals – ran from the pub and threw a bottle of beer at the driver’s window, smashing it. They then kicked the car and tried to get in.
“Thankfully, the doors lock when the engine is running otherwise we could have been in serious trouble.
“Eventually, after what seemed an eternity but was probably about a minute, we were able to pull away.
“That bottle could have come through the window and killed my driver as it was aimed directly at his temple.
“Needles of glass could have hit and maybe killed me if they had gone into my head. The more I think about it, the worse it gets.”
Gold is considering offering a £5,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of one or both of the men responsible. He said: “Despite the speed with which it happened, I saw one woman watching the whole thing unfold. “I appeal to her and any of the 30 or so people outside the pub to give any information they have to the police.”
The saddest irony is that, had Gold not stopped to sign a programme and have his photo taken with a disabled Villa fan, he would have avoided the horrific ordeal.
He said: “Had I decided to pass that lad by, I would have been away and gone but that’s not me. “It’s ironic the acceptable and unacceptable faces of this game were so close together they almost collided.”
The incident has left Gold reviewing his personal security and he admits it is a cast-iron certainty the Rolls, which sustained damage estimated at £2,000, will be left in the garage on away trips.
Gold added: “I’m sure these lunatics attacked the car in part because I was once Birmingham City’s chairman.”It’s a return to the bad, bad days of football and I appeal specifically to that young woman to tell the police everything she saw.”