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"United! United!" they shouted when the English
Premier League side arrived.
Fans were disappointed over Cristiano Ronaldo's absence but
found excitement over the new coach, Erik ten Hag, who was
joined by midfielder Bruno Fernandes, goalkeeper David De Gea
and forward Marcus Rashford leading the arrivals.
"I'm a bit disappointed that Ronaldo did not join the trip. I
still admire him though, because he's my idol," said Adthapong
O. Charoenkul, 32, who was among the first in line at Don Muang
airport.
Manchester United and Liverpool face off on Tuesday, the
Southeast Asian nation's first overseas match since the pandemic
began. Liverpool are expected to arrive at noon (0500 GMT) on
Sunday.
The pre-season friendly is part of the teams' tours before the
top English soccer league's season begins next month. United
will then go on to Melbourne and Liverpool to Singapore.
"Erik ten Hag is an inspiration to the team. There are lots of
rules that players have to adapt to the new coach and new
strategies," said Adthapong, who has supported the team since
1999. The coach "will manage to bring the team to second place
in the upcoming season."
Organizers sold tickets for as much as 25,000 baht ($700) to the
match, scheduled to feature a performance by Jackson Wang of
K-POP boy band GOT7.
(Reporting by Juarawee Kittisilpa; Writing by Chayut
Setboonsarng; Editing by William Mallard)
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