Football chairman paid £1 million to recruit me, and he wasn’t even familiar with my appearance,

Football chairman paid £1 million to recruit me, and he wasn’t even familiar with my appearance,

Leroy Lita, a former Reading striker, detailed how Royals owner John Madejski had no idea what he looked like despite having paid £1 million of his own money to sign him.

Leroy Lita, a former Reading player, has said Royals owner John Madejski was unaware of his appearance despite spending $1 million on him in 2005.

 

After rising through the ranks of Chelsea’s youth academy, Lita was let go by the Blues and eventually found himself at Bristol City, where he signed his first contract as a young adult. The 38-year-old journeyman striker, who has played for numerous clubs in the UK, had a productive season with the Robins in 2004–05, tallying 29 goals in 51 contests.

Lita’s performance that year attracted Reading’s attention, and owner Madejski spent £1 million to bring him to the Madejski Stadium. The only problem was that Madejski didn’t know what Lita actually looked like at the time.

When Lita and his agent sat down at the stadium’s restaurant to have his Royals medical on the day when Lita, who assisted Reading to a Premier League promotion in his first season, arrived, strangely, Madejski appeared.

Lita and his agency approached Madejski anticipating an enthusiastic welcome to the club from the proprietor of Reading. But Madesjki didn’t know who he was; Lita recently described the encounter on the Under the Cosh podcast.

 

“I entered the Madejski Stadium at the time he paid $1,000,000.” He paid for it out of his own pocket, not from the budget, Lita claimed.

“So I went to the Madejski Stadium to complete my medical and other necessary tasks, I went into the restaurant with my agent, and I walked past him without him knowing who I was. swearing down, you didn’t even know what I looked like.

“Anyone might have been me. Oh, good morning, gentlemen, he said. At the time, he was with Cilla Black. He was dining with Cilla Black at either lunch or dinner.

“John Madejski, this is Leroy by the way,” my representative had to say. Oh, how are you, he asked.

 

He didn’t even recognize me, I thought. He just paid one million pounds for me out of his own cash. What’s happening?