Mohamed Al Fayed is to honour legendary singer Michael Jackson by unveiling a statue of the pop star outside – Fulham FC’s football ground.
Fulham chairman was a good friend of the ‘King of Pop’, who died suddenly in 2009 at the age of 50.
To celebrate Jacko’s life, colourful character Al Fayed commissioned a statue – which will depict the American star in one of his iconic poses.
It was initially planned for the statue to be located outside the Harrods store in Knightsbridge, but Al Fayed sold the world’s most famous shop last year for around £1.5 billion to the Qatari royal family.
As a result of the Harrods sale, the statue will take pride of place outside the club’s Craven Cottage stadium in west London when it’s unveiled next month.
The 78-year-old told Fulham’s website: “Michael Jackson was truly a legend, a term used too often in this modern world saturated in the hyperbole surrounding celebrity.
“He was my friend, a man with whom I shared many happy memories and who died a tragic and untimely death.
“He left behind a legacy of music so vast it takes one’s breath away; from a precocious talent to an ingenuity and ground breaking modernity that shall never be repeated.
“It shall often be imitated, but it will never be replicated, Michael Jackson was, and shall always remain, one of a kind.
“I hope that many fans of his will visit the statue at the Cottage from far and wide, and that Fulham fans will appreciate seeing the finest performer in the world, in and amongst them, the finest fans in the world.”
The statue will be unveiled on Sunday April 3 before the Fulham’s clash with Ian Holloway’s Blackpool.
You might also be interested in:
Village club chairman suspended after trying to sign Lionel Messi
Jermain Defoe’s £3.75 million mansion for sale
Steven Gerrard’s Bentley Continental for sale
Premier League’s best players named
Signed Dean Richards shirts on eBay