During his footballing career Djibril Cisse was somewhat of a journeyman, playing for 12 different clubs including Liverpool, Sunderland and Queens Park Rangers in England.
Once a pacy striker, the now 36-year-old hung up his boots just last year after netting an impressive 248 goals in 579 total appearances.
Wherever the Frenchman went, controversy seemed to follow. Just a week before he was sending AC Milan goalkeeper Dida the wrong way from the penalty spot in Liverpool's incredible 2005 Champions League final victory, Cisse was in the national press after buying a manor house overlooking the Mersey in the village of Frodsham, Cheshire.
Not the most unusual activity for a footballer you might imagine. Except this house came with a title that made Cisse 'Lord of the Manor of Frodsham' and the Reds striker angered the the local hunt by banning it from crossing his land.
During his season-long loan spell with Sunderland in the 2008/09 season, Cisse scored 11 goals in 38 appearances for the club and may have got more had he not been moonlighting with a cameo role in French action comedy film 'Taxi 4'.
After spells with Panathinaikos and Lazio, the controversial forward returned to England, signing a two and a half year deal with QPR. He scored on his debut in a 2-2 draw with Aston Villa and then received two red cards in his first five matches for Mark Hughes' side.
His record of 10 goals in 29 games for the London side was not too bad, but with his pace fading Cisse then spent time at a string of clubs based in Qatar and Europe. Ever one for the spotlight, in 2015 he appeared in French TV show 'Danse avec les stars' but was voted off the show after just one week. Later in the same year he was arrested by French police and questioned over an alleged attempt to blackmail another international footballer over a sex tape.
With nine goals in 41 appearances for his country, there is no doubt that Cisse was considered one of the top strikers around for at least a part of his career. Liverpool even had to pay Auxerre £14.5m for his signature back in 2004.
In 2017 though, the Liverpool Echo reported that he had finally retired from professional football to focus on his clothing range ‘Mr Lenoir’ and his career as a DJ and music producer.
He told the Echo: "The adventure continues, another life begins. A lion never dies."
Never change, Djibril, never change.
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