Man U re-establishing SA links
Brad Morgan
11 July 2006
For the first time since 1993, English Premier League giants Manchester United will tour South Africa. They touch down in the Rainbow Nation on Friday.
Former Red Devils' goalkeeper Gary Bailey has warned the club not to expect any easy games. He cited a number of factors for his warning, including playing in an unfamiliar environment in different conditions, and playing in the middle of winter, where rain can be expected in Cape Town and humidity in Durban.
"Overall, I think it will be a good test for United before the start of next season," he told Manchester United's official website.
Vodacom Challenge
The Red Devils will be action in the 2006 Vodacom Challenge, facing Soweto soccer giants Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates.
First up, they face Pirates in Durban on 15 July. Then, it's off to Cape Town for a clash against Chiefs at Newlands on 18 July. Chiefs and Pirates then meet at the Royal
Bafokeng Sports Palace in Rustenburg on 20 July.
After that, the final will take place at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria on 22 July.
The United squad will be their best one available, but will exclude players who were recently in action in the World Cup. That means, though, that stars like Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will be on tour.
'He will select a strong squad'
Manchester United director Sir Bobby Charlton said: "I know Sir Alex Ferguson - whenever he puts a squad together, he selects a winning team. I have no doubt that he will select a strong squad."
Charlton has played in South Africa himself. He represented Pretoria outfit Arcadia Shepherds in 1976, and in 1979, at the age of 41, led a team – Charlton's Mainstay XI – in a boycott busting tour of SA.
Included in that side, whose players had an average age of 38, were England World Cup winners Bobby Moore and Roger Hunt, former Liverpool captain
Ron Yeats, and Charlton's former Manchester United teammates David Sadler and Ian Storey Moore.
Chiefs beat United
On that tour, Charlton's side took on Kaizer Chiefs in front of 40 000 fans at the Orlando Stadium, with the Amakhosi running out two-one winners.
When Manchester United toured South Africa in 1993, they took on Arsenal in Johannesburg, losing two-nil. Three days later, they faced Kaizer Chiefs, with the teams playing to a one-all draw.
In a further link to South Africa, Quinton Fortune, after signing for the Red Devils, established an official link between the English club and his Cape Town-based team FC Fortune.
Then, Carlos Quieroz, after falling out of favour as coach of Bafana Bafana, signed on to be assistant coach to Sir Alex Ferguson at Old Trafford. He left Manchester for a brief spell in charge of Real Madrid, before returning to United after being given the boot at Real.
'The
perfect opportunity'
Kaizer Chiefs' chairman Kaizer Motaung is looking forward to the high-profile tour. He reckons the Vodacom Challenge offers "the perfect opportunity for South Africa's up-and-coming soccer talent to come to the fore against an international club of the magnitude of Manchester United."
Irvin Khoza, chairman of Orlando Pirates, said: "It is time for the players of South Africa's leading clubs ... to show the world that they have the necessary skills, discipline and passion to be rated among the top clubs in the world."
Those are high aims, indeed. However, if the Soweto giants should produce a win (or two), maybe they will change many people's perception of South African club football and recognize the talent that the country has to offer.
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