ONE Irishman got an unusual welcome to Spain when he was treated like a superstar after arriving at Málaga Airport.
A video recorded last month shows the young man being mobbed in the terminal building by a group of around 50 fans of Spanish football club Malaga CF.
As the bewildered tourist is greeted with welcome banners and showered with confetti, excited fans pose for pictures as their 'latest singing' holds up his new no. 33 shirt.
YouTube prank
However, the video is the work of Spanish social media star Carlos García, AKA Carliyo.
The YouTuber was recreating a similar prank from 2018, in which he surprised a random passenger at the airport in similar fashion, dubbing the new signing 'Steven'.
Introducing his latest prank, Carliyo says this time he plans to surprise not one but two unsuspecting passengers as though they are footballers the Andalusian club has paid millions of euros for.
"We are going to treat him as if he were a god," he says.
The social media star then joins a busload of fellow Málaga fans who are in on the prank as they chant songs en route to the airport to greet their superstar signings.
As the unwitting Irishman enters the terminal, he is lauded as Málaga's new signing 'Spilberg', while some of Carliyo's fellow pranksters pose as bodyguards and the club's sheikh owner.
To his credit, the bemused Irish lad plays along, dancing along with the fans and showing off his somewhat questionable skills as he almost takes out a camera.
He then signs autographs for the delighted fans and despite admitting he doesn't speak Spanish, does his best to conduct an interview with a member of the group posing as a reporter.
The new signing promised to score 500 goals (Image: YouTube / Carliyo)"Very emotional, very emotional," he says.
"I'd just like to thank everybody in Málaga and I'd like to enjoy my stay here."
He then promises the fans he'll score 500 goals for the club.
The group then greet another passenger as their second fictional new signing, Xan Kee Te.
The passenger looks even more bemused than the Irish tourist but still poses for photos and signs autographs for the fans.
More 'signings' promised
Carliyo says he made the video, which has since gone viral on social media, with 'a group of guys with a lot of free time and a questionable education'.
Visitors to Málaga Airport in the future should be wary as the YouTuber promises fans haven't seen the end of his signings, with another promised next year.
The social media star also vows that Málaga CF will win the league this season, while the Champions League will follow soon.
With the former La Liga stalwarts plying their trade in the Spanish third tier this season after finishing 20th in the Segunda División last term, Spilberg and Xan Kee Te have their work cut out.
The fans' joy over their fictional new signings offers some light relief from the real situation the club finds itself in as they have been limited to free transfers and loan signings this summer.
It's a far cry from the 2012/13 season when Málaga reached the quarter-finals of the Champions League with a squad containing the likes of Isco, Joaquin, Júlio Baptista and Roque Santa Cruz.
