Leeds United: Cellino meets Mini Me

It was the first UK football match the Austin Powers actor had ever attended and he got to see Leeds storm to victory, beating Derby County 2-0 in the Championship clash.

Delighted club owner Massimo Cellino is said to have labelled the diminutive A-lister his “hero,” telling him “you’ve got to come to every game”.

Leeds businessman Terry George, who the pint-sized performer is staying with, said: “He absolutely loved it.

“He said he couldn’t have come to watch a better team.

“He plays a lot of PlayStation stuff with football but he’d never actually been to a game.”

Mr George, who owns Leeds bars and clubs Fibre, Mission and Viaduct, added: “Everyone was coming up to him saying you’re the lucky charm.”

He said: “Massimo said ‘I love you, you’re my hero, you’ve got to come to every game.’”

At just 2ft 8in tall, Verne could never claim to be LUFC’s biggest fan but the former stuntman, who was sporting a child’s size Leeds United shirt, is certainly one of the most famous. Mr George said: “He’s going to become an ambassador for Leeds.

“He wanted a selection of shirts so he could wear them when he gets back to Los Angeles.”

Verne shot to fame as Mini-Me – Dr Evil’s smaller and more concentrated pure evil protege in the 1999 hit comedy Austin Powers – and also appeared as Griphook the Goblin in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.

He’s said to be passionate about old buildings and was keen to stay in Mr George’s 19th century castle, near Halifax, which was voted Britain’s Best Home in 2008.

Leeds mid fielder Adryan, “a massive fan of Verne”, was expected to meet his favourite actor face to face yesterday.

And Verne, who was born with a rare form of dwarfism, was also hoping to go shopping in Leeds city centre and visit York before heading to London tomorrow.

The much-loved actor, who has also appeared on various reality TV shows – including Celebrity Big Brother – is making guest appearances at a series of UK universities.