The Barça player who went from being Usain Bolt's neighbour to living as a homeless person

Barcelona"I am a champion, I am a great champion, I am not a criminal." While being arrested for the fifth time in a few weeks, Samardo Samuels began to shout. The former Barcelona basketball player, who was listening to extremely loud music, appeared in the courtyard of a building in Milan drinking alcohol. At his side, his dog.

According to The Day, Samuels is currently on trial for harassment and also violated a restraining order involving two members of the neighboring family who have reported him. The previous complaints that ended with his arrest included a handful of altercations in public with other residents of the city as involved.

Italian police received a call on Saturday from a woman who said that Samuels was in the hallway of the building and prevented her and her family, including two minors, from entering the house. The frightened children did not stop crying. The former Jamaican player initially pretended that he did not understand Italian to excuse himself and locked himself in his apartment, but finally made himself available to police officers.

Samuels, who had experience in the NBA and had played for Olimpia Milan, signed for Xavi Pascual's Barça in the 2015-16 season. After his time with the Blaugrana team, the center tried his luck in China and Italy. The player signed for Betis, but did not even make his debut with the Seville team in the Endesa League because he used social media to criticize the then Betis coach, Alejandro Martínez. His next destination was Partizan, where he was the protagonist of new controversies. "I don't normally give interviews to women," he said before being sanctioned.

Limoges, Panionios and Chorale Roanne Basket were his last teams before retiring and starting to live as a homeless person. As he explained The Newspaper, the former Barça player was sleeping in his Porsche with the windows broken in a Barcelona car park. His extreme situation led him to be involved in several disturbances. In one of them he hit a person's head with a stick.

Usain Bolt's neighbour

The story of Samardo Samuels, who as a child wanted to be a footballer and when he was a professional he was motivated by thereggaeBefore each match, it is peculiar. "Usain Bolt lives 15 minutes from my house, where I grew up. His mother and mine are good friends. They often have dinner together and see each other every day. They have been friends for a long time," the player explained to Esport3. "I have known Usain since high school, when I was 13 or 14, he was my noi."

"When I went to Barcelona I thought I could finally win the Euroleague and play with good players. I was doing well in Milan, but I knew that a more powerful team was being organised in Barcelona. The idea was very exciting and for me it was a great opportunity," said Samuels, a Popeye fan. His connection with the Palau Blaugrana was immediate and the Barça fans celebrated his outgoing attitude.

For years, the main American analysts placed Samuels as a future NBA star, but his adaptation to the best league in the world was not easy and he was not able to fit into any European team.