In November 1996, Dia convinced Graeme Souness, then Southampton manager, that he was the cousin of FIFA World Player of the Year and Ballon d'Or winner George Weah, which led to him signing a one-month contract with Southampton days later.
14 Facts About Ali Dia
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2.
Ali Dia played only one match in his short spell at the club.
3.
Ali Dia came on as a substitute in a league game, but was then himself substituted.
4.
Days later, Ali Dia was signed by Southampton manager Graeme Souness, after Souness received a phone call purporting to be from Liberian international and then-FIFA World Player of the Year George Weah.
5.
Souness was convinced and, without any due diligence, Ali Dia was signed on a one-month contract.
6.
Ali Dia played just one game for Southampton, wearing the number 33 shirt, against Leeds United on 23 November 1996; he had originally been scheduled to play in a reserve team friendly against Arsenal, but the match was cancelled due to a waterlogged pitch.
7.
Ali Dia was released by Southampton two weeks into his contract.
8.
Ali Dia was eventually transfer listed by Gateshead after a spell of poor form.
9.
Ali Dia studied business at Northumbria University in Newcastle, graduating in 2001.
10.
Ali Dia received a Master of Business Administration from San Francisco State University in 2003.
11.
Ali Dia told them that the Southampton story was "hurtful" to him and his family, but insisted that he was not a liar and that he trained with Southampton for a month and a half, where he impressed before making his debut, despite previous reports that he spent less than a week with Southampton before he made his infamous debut.
12.
Ali Dia's son, Simon Dia, is a French football player, born and raised in France.
13.
Ali Dia has regularly featured in lists of bad players or bad transfers.
14.
Ali Dia was named at Number 1 in a list of "The 50 worst footballers" in The Times and on ESPN's ranking of the 50 worst transfers in Premier League history.