Thieves steal £8,200 from luggage of former Arsenal striker Nwankwo Kanu at Moscow airport

The retired Nigerian international flew from London to Moscow before heading onto Kaliningrad, where his home country will play Croatia in their opening match of the tournament.

When he arrived at his final destination he realised the cash was missing from his luggage, Russia’s state news agency Tass reported on Sunday.

Two baggage handlers at Sheremetyevo airport in Moscow have been detained on suspicion of theft.

Police spokeswoman Irina Volk added: “The stolen money has been confiscated and will be returned to its owner.”

A similar crime took place at the same airport in March, when a baggage handler was arrested and admitted stealing €56,000 from a package belonging to a Moscow bank.

Kanu, 41, played in Kaliningrad in a special “Relive the Legends” friendly match on Sunday.

The former striker was part of a FIFA legends team that defeated a Russian veterans side 6-4.

Thousands of international fans are set to descend on Russia as World Cup matches are played in 11 host cities.

The first teams will also arrive in Russia this week.

Kanu played 197 games for Arsenal between 1998 and 2004, scoring 44 goals.

He also captained the Nigerian international side and scored 12 goals in 87 appearances.