Leeds United earned a cult-hero by swooping for controversial ex-Liverpool and Rangers man: View | OneFootball

After a relatively impressive 2011/12 campaign with relegated side Doncaster Rovers, Leeds United made the controversial move to sign Senegalese attacker El Hadji Diouf.

It was a surprising move, not because of Diouf's ability, but because Leeds were then managed by Neil Warnock, and it's fair to say that the pair had history.

In an FA Cup game in 2011, Warnock's QPR side faced Diouf's Blackburn side and Hoops' player Jamie Mackie suffered a broken leg, and Warnock claimed that Diouf had taunted the injured player.

In his post-match press conference, Warnock said: "For many years I have thought he (Diouf) was the gutter type - I was going to call him a sewer rat, but that might be insulting to sewer rats.

"I hope he goes abroad because I won't miss watching him. He is a nasty little person."

Safe to say that it was something of a surprise 18 months later when Warnock signed Diouf, and it was a relationship that blossomed at Elland Road.

El Hadji Diouf impressed during his time at Elland Road

After leaving Doncaster Rovers in the summer of 2012, El Hadji Diouf was on the hunt for a new club, and it would have a looked a safe bet for him to end up anywhere other than Leeds.

But after meeting with Warnock, a deal was agreed which would see Diouf join the club initially on a week-to-week contract before impressing enough to earn a deal until January.

He became a regular starter for Leeds during the 2012/13 season, becoming popular with the supporters and showing everyone what he was capable of.

After the club beat Everton in the third round of the 2012/13 League Cup, Warnock branded Diouf a matador, and insisted that the former Liverpool man was one of the lowest-paid players at the club despite his performances.

He subsequently signed a new 18-month deal in December 2012, taking him up to the summer of 2014 as a result of his performances during the first-half of the season.

During his first season at Elland Road, Diouf would make 45 appearances in all competitions, scoring seven goals and registering ten assists, but that was as good as it got for the Senegal international.

In May 2013, AS Kaloum announced they had signed Diouf, much to the bemusement of both the player and Leeds, but he remained at Elland Road for another season.

However, it was a bad case of second season syndrome for Diouf, and he managed just seven appearances, registering one assist, before he departed in the summer of 2014.

The forward wasn't without his controversies at Elland Road, and he received a red card in a game against Brighton in 2013 for making offensive gestures to the Seagulls' fans, and the player also missed training and fixtures to return to Africa for Nelson Mandela's funeral.

Whilst he didn't enjoy the same success during the 2013/14 season, Diouf was a revelation during his early days as a Leeds player, and will go down as a cult-hero.

El Hadji Diouf's career fizzled out after leaving Leeds United

After leaving Leeds, Diouf joined Malaysian side Sabah FC, but his spell with the club didn't last long, and he departed in July 2015.

That was his final club before retiring, and Leeds were the last British club to have Diouf on their books. The Senegal international had played for the likes of Rangers and Liverpool, as well as plenty of other English clubs, and was a very well-known player on these shores, perhaps not always for the best reasons though.

One thing is for certain, and that is Diouf was a memorable character in British football, and is still talked about now.