3. Matchday

Explicit content warning

04/01/24 • 37 min

It’s one thing to blag your way into a football club for a trial. It’s something else entirely to find yourself stepping onto the pitch during an actual Premier League match. So what exactly happened in the run-up to Ali Dia making his infamous appearance for Southampton against Leeds in November 1996? Josh and Dara investigate the run-up to matchday.

If you like what you hear, please do leave a rating and a review. Don't forget, you can listen on Global Player. Download it from the App Store, or head to globalplayer.com

If you like what you hear, please do leave a rating and a review. Don't forget, you can listen on Global Player. Download it from the App Store, or head to globalplayer.com

Previous Episode

2. Secret Agents

The mid-90s were a wild time in football. Regulations were loose, players could still be seen in your local boozer and clubs themselves were easier to access. Josh and Dara explore how these were the perfect conditions for someone purporting to be footballing legend George Weah to phone Southampton and offer them their “cousin” – Ali Dia.

If you like what you hear, please do leave a rating and a review. Don't forget, you can listen on Global Player. Download it from the App Store, or head to globalplayer.com

Next Episode

4. The Morning After

Against all odds, Ali Dia has now become a Premier League footballer, if only for a fleeting moment. Questions are being asked about who he is and where he’s come from, and this is where the myth of Ali as 'a hoaxer or a prankster' implodes.

If you're enjoying this series, please do leave a rating and a review. Don't forget, you can listen on Global Player. Download it from the App Store, or head to globalplayer.com