Liverpool midfielder Steven Gerrard's house was burgled while he was away playing in a Champions League game in Marseille, France, on Tuesday night, a police source said.

He is the latest Liverpool player to be burgled while playing a match for his club.

Gerrard's wife Alex Curran was in the house at the time.

Merseyside Police would not confirm it was Gerrard's house, but said it was investigating a confrontational burglary in Formby, Merseyside.

"Officers were called to a house at about 9:30pm last night following a call from a female resident that four men had broken into the house and stolen items of jewelry," a police spokeswoman said yesterday.

Curran and another woman, who was in the house, were shaken by the incident, but were not injured. The men, who were unarmed, wore hoods and balaclavas, she added. It is not clear how they broke in.

Earlier this year, the home of Liverpool's goalkeeper Pepe Reina was burgled as he helped the club reach last season's Champions League final.

Teammates Jerzy Dudek, Daniel Agger, Peter Crouch and Florent Sinama-Pongolle, as well as Everton's Andy van der Meyde, were all burgled last year.

Last month, striker Dirk Kuyt suffered a break in at his home while on international duty with the Dutch team.

(Agencies via Shanghai Daily December 13, 2007)