{"id":363438,"date":"2011-04-03T14:48:46","date_gmt":"2011-04-03T14:48:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.ghanamma.net\/2011\/04\/03\/al-fayed-slams-michael-jacksons-statue-haters\/"},"modified":"2011-04-03T14:48:46","modified_gmt":"2011-04-03T14:48:46","slug":"al-fayed-slams-michael-jacksons-statue-haters","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/2011\/04\/03\/al-fayed-slams-michael-jacksons-statue-haters\/","title":{"rendered":"Al Fayed Slams Michael Jackson’s Statue Haters"},"content":{"rendered":"

Mohammed Al Fayed has told fans they can “go to hell” if they do not appreciate the new Michael Jackson statue at Craven Cottage.<\/p>\n

Fulham chairman Al Fayed, a close friend of the late performer, has caused controversy after announcing he had decided to place the tribute to Jackson outside the Cottagers’ stadium.<\/p>\n

The statue was commissioned following Jackson’s death in June 2009 and was due to be erected at Harrods before Al Fayed sold the Knightsbridge store.<\/p>\n

The decision to relocate it to Craven Cottage is likely to divide opinion, with statues at football grounds generally reserved for club legends.<\/p>\n

Jackson’s links to Fulham are tenuous to say the least – he watched a game there as a guest of Al Fayed in 1999 – while the singer was also dogged by controversy during his lifetime.<\/p>\n

Despite this, Al Fayed has refuted claims that the memorial is bizarre and lashed out at fans that have spoken against it.<\/p>\n

“Why is it bizarre?,” he said after the statue was unveiled on Sunday. “Football fans love it.<\/p>\n

“If some stupid fans don’t understand and appreciate such a gift, they can go to hell.<\/p>\n

“I don’t want them to be fans. If they don’t understand and don’t believe in things, I believe in they can go to Chelsea, they can go to anywhere else.”<\/p>\n

He added: “People will queue to come and visit it from all over the UK and it is something that I and everybody else should be proud of.”<\/p>\n

Kit Symons played during Jackson’s appearance against Wigan in 1999 and is now Under-18s manager at the Cottagers.<\/p>\n

“It is great,” he said. “The big thing is, it is obviously something that the chairman feels very, very passionately about and he has decided to erect this statue and fair dos to him.”<\/p>\n

Speaking on the time of Jackson’s visit, he added: “It was just happy times. They were great times back then.<\/p>\n

“The chairman obviously used to bring high-profile people down the games.<\/p>\n

“Tony Curtis was here a few weeks after and it was just fantastic times.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

<\/p>\n

See the original post:
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Mohammed Al Fayed has told fans they can “go to hell” if they do not appreciate the new Michael Jackson statue at Craven Cottage. 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