As a tribute to self-confessed Liverpool fanatic LeBron James turning up at Anfield for the clash with United this afternoon, here are five other celebrity fans you might not have heard of.
By Conor Heneghan and Sean Nolan
Justin Timberlake and Manchester United
It’s been a while since we’ve heard from Alan Smith (Indeed, the last time was when his Twitter account was hacked by a jealous ex-girlfriend seeking revenge), but Smudger once enjoyed far greater status in the game and he had the celebrity fans to prove it.
Supposedly ample-trousered singing sensation Justin Timberlake was thought to be a good chum of Smith’s when he was playing with Man United and was there to witness the Red Devils pick up the Premier League trophy in 2007 as a guest of the former Leeds man.
“I’m a Red! I’m mates with Smithy so he’s my favourite player but Ronaldo doesn’t suck either, he’s awesome. I really like Rooney too,” said Timberlake at the time.
“Smithy hooked me up with some tickets so I went to watch the home game against West Ham.
“It was kind of fun to see a game that didn’t matter because all the fans cared about was the Premiership cup being presented after the game.”
Now that Smith is exiled to the reserves at Newcastle, we somehow doubt that his correspondence with Timberlake is as frequent as it was in the good old days.
Kevin Costner and Arsenal
After Dances with Wolves you would expect Kev to be on Mick McCarthy’s side but the Oscar winner fell for Arsenal when filming Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, and that love has endured, even if Kev expresses it in an unusual way.
“When I came over and made Robin Hood I got a chance to go see a football game and it happened to be Arsenal,” he said.
“They invited me as their guest and I didn’t know what to expect, and I was blown away. So my mythical relationship with Arsenal is because they asked me.
“Because they were kind to me and that was my first game, just like the Beach Boys said you’ve got to be true to your school. I’ve been true to Arsenal, so I have been tied in an amusing way to that team.”
We have no idea either.
Cuba Gooding Junior and … hurling
Now we don’t know if Cuba Gooding Junior had even seen hurling before and his views on the merits of an extra man in the half-back line remain a mystery, but he did pop up at this year’s All-Ireland hurling final. Coutesy of @paulcarty’s Twitter account we have proof.
Cuba at Croke Park for the hurling
Sylvester Stallone and Everton
It is perhaps appropriate that of all the Premier League teams, Sly Stallone decided to support Everton. Tough, uncompromising and a little bit macho, they embody all the qualities that Sylvester did in films such as Rambo, Rocky and erm, Stop… or my Mom will shoot.
Stallone, who famously and hilariously played a goalkeeper in Escape to Victory, turned up alongside Bill Kenwright for Everton v Reading in 2007 a game that, because of his presence, was described in various quarters as a ‘Rocky horror show’ and ‘Escape to a 1-1 draw’.
It’s fair to say he enjoyed the experience, but it was his views on Reading’s goal that made for the most amusing reading.
“I went down into the locker room beforehand and met the players and the manager,” he said.
“If Everton have a couple more players – the spirit is there, and they fought back hard, especially given how the Reading goal was so questionable, being offside, or whatever.
“Although Reading played good as well, of course. I’d hoped it was going to be a six-point turnaround, but it was a great game. My man of the match? It would have to be (Andy) Johnson.
“I’m definitely going back. The weather was incredible – it was like Miami. And yes, I’m an Everton fan now.”
Hugh Jackman and Norwich City
One thing we didn’t expect to hear from super smooth Aussie actor Hugh Jackman during his promotional appearances for new flick Real Steel was talk of his regret at not investing in Norwich City.
“Sometimes I make big mistakes,” he said. “I got a letter about a year ago saying, ‘Being such a huge Norwich City fan would I like to be a celebrity investor?’, like a small part-owner.”
“I said, ‘I think that’s a little stretched, I’ve been to Carrow Road once, my mum took me’, so I decided not to invest. And since then they’re on a run, so what do I know?”
“People say to me about these underdog stories in Hollywood, ‘it never happens in real life’, but hey, Norwich city are in the Premier League,” he added.
Ever since Jackman made his surprising revelations, it is widely believed that Delia Smith’s oft-quoted call to arms to the Norwich supporters was widely misinterpreted.
Instead of shouting ‘Let’s be avin’ you’, she actually meant ‘Let’s be avin’ Hugh’ as she, unlike most Norwich followers, knew of Jackman’s Canaries connection and wanted him to throw some of the many millions he has made back into the club.
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