They can’t help it. Sometimes, footballers make so much money they just don’t know what to do with it. Case in point, these car-lovers (that’s questionable!) who seem to do their best to ruin their class motors with the oddest customising imaginable, or they just have rather unique tastes. The likes of Mario Balotelli, Stephen Ireland and Djibril Cisse have all committed crimes against cars. But who do you think is the worst offender?
The Stoke City midfielder has always been a little out there with his car choices, as you can see. A pink-trim Ranger Rover did little for his street-cred, while his blue and white resprayed Audi R8 (when he played for Man City) was flashy. What made his R8 even more ridiculous was its Superman petrol cap! Why? He once bought his girlfriend, Jessica Lawlor a £260k Bentley too, paying £1,000 to have the iconic ‘B’ motif on the bonnet changed to her initials.The car also featured red leather seats with ‘To Jess, Love from Stephen’ written in stitches on them, as well as hearts stitched on the headrests.
The trouble with El Hadji Diouf…
The notorious Senegal star regularly found himself in hot water, whether it was with managers, referees or even the authorities. On the pitch, he liked to stand out from the crowd, showing off silky footwork with some crafty step-overs, sometimes bamboozling defenders. Off the pitch, he was equally as flamboyant and his gold-plated Cadillac Escalade was an ultimate statement of wealth. Thing was, his Caddy looked less gold-plated and more plastic in that silly wrap. Former Newcastle star Nile Ranger wasn’t afraid to wear his colours on his car. He had his own customised Range Rover in white with a black strip running through the middle of it. But that wasn’t why it was offensive to the eye. The fact the bad boy swapped out ‘Rover’ on the bonnet for his own surname was a bit too much to take for us.
When you’ve got an amazing car – in this case a Mercedes McLaren SLR – it’s beauty speaks for itself.But if you’re ex-Arsenal and Chelsea star William Gallas, you’ll want to add your own personal touch to proceedings.He had his £200k plus car wrapped in chrome, making it look more like a disco ball. What was he thinking? When David James was at Portsmouth, then manager Tony Adams made a rule that the worst trainer in the squad had to drive a 1992 Robin Reliant the next day to training.
The ex England goalie was reportedly behind the wheel most days because he was terrible. And over the years, Pompey’s pros threw money at the vehicle to customise it – once making it look like Mr T’s A-Team van!
The controversial Italian striker once asked, ‘Why Always Me?’ on a hidden shirt revealed after he scored against Man United for his old club, City.
And when he was in Manchester, he loved going out – and whether or not he was trying to be inconspicuous with his camouflage Bentley, we don’t know.
But the garish sight certainly meant he stood out from the crowd.