Manchester United confirmed on Thursday that its will be coming to Melbourne as part of its pre-season Tour 22 that is scheduled to begin in Thailand before coming to Melbourne. It will be the first time the former English champions have played in the city since 1999 when they faced the Socceroos.
According to United’s Communications Department, the Red Devils will take on Melbourne Victory at the Melbourne Cricket Ground at 8.15 pm, on Friday, 15 July, and will then face Premier League rivals Crystal Palace on 19 July.
Before arriving in Melbourne, the former English champions are scheduled to face Liverpool in “The Match” Centenary Cup on 12 July at the Rajamangala Stadium in Bangkok. More Tour 22 fixtures are to be announced.
Manchester United’s football director, John Murtough, said: “Pre-season tours are such an important part of the squad’s preparation for the season ahead, so it’s crucial to have excellent training facilities and high-quality opposition. We’re delighted that we’ll have both these things during our visits to Bangkok and Melbourne this summer, and we’re looking forward to playing in front of our fans in both cities for the first time in a number of years.”
United’s chief operating officer, Collette Roche, said that the last time the club had been able to travel on an international pre-season tour had been in 2019.
“We can’t wait to get going this summer and reconnect with our fans in south-east Asia and Australasia. … Our matches in Bangkok and Melbourne will be a wonderful opportunity for international fans to see their favourite players up close in an exciting schedule of games,” said Ms Roche.
Melbourne Victory Managing Director Caroline Carnegie said in a statement from the club that the game would be Victory’s biggest international friendly “since our game against Liverpool FC, in July 2013 which attracted 95,000 to the MCG”.
Victory head coach Tony Popovic said the game would be a big occasion for his club and its players.
“We are excited to get the opportunity to test our squad against the Premier League giant and to do this in front of a passionate home crowd,” Mr Popovic said. ” … it’s a great opportunity to showcase our Club, Melbourne Victory, to the world and a chance for our members and fans to see a special organisation and a club with such a big history.”
Victory midfielder Jake Brimmer said the event would provide invaluable experience for the players.
“It’s a massive opportunity, especially for the younger players to prove a point and hopefully get recognised,” Brimmer said. “I was lucky enough to go to the Liverpool game in 2013 and it was a great atmosphere. Playing in front of almost 100,000 people is a dream for any kid, so I can’t wait for that.”
While Chrystal Palace will be taking on Manchester United on 19 July at the MCG it was not clear if further games were scheduled to be played in Melbourne or elsewhere.
Crystal Palace F.C. Chairman Steve Parish said: “It will be fantastic to finally witness Crystal Palace play in Australia, and to do so at the iconic MCG in front of our Australian fans and strong travelling support is something the entire squad and staff, led by Patrick Vieira, are excited about.”
The club said on its website that the “fixture forms part of a three-match overseas tour, with the club’s two other fixtures to be announced in April, enabling supporters to make travel and accommodation plans.”
Meanwhile, Scottish giants Glasgow Rangers have announced that they are pulling out of the inaugural Sydney Super Cup, a four-team tournament planned for Sydney in November while the World Cup takes place in Qatar.
Rangers were scheduled to face Scottish Premiership rivals Celtic on 20 November and were to also play Sydney FC and Western Sydney Wanderers at Australia Stadium.
Rangers announced their withdrawal from the tournament in a terse statement on their website: “Rangers can confirm the Club will not be participating in the Sydney Super Cup in November 2022. After it became clear the tournament organisers were unwilling to fulfil their commitments to Rangers, we have, with immediate effect, terminated the Club’s agreement with the organisers.”
While no further information has been offered, Fox Sports reported that the club had concerns over commercial arrangements relating to the tournament. It added that Ranger fans were angered by material that promoted the tournament as a “homecoming” for Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou.
Celtic and Rangers are set to face each other this week in a game that could well decide the Scottish Premiership – should Celtic win, they will pull six points clear at the top of the table and if Rangers win, they will be on level pegging in the run-up to the season finale.
♦ Tickets Manchester United v Melbourne victory game in Australia are available through: Telstra Plus Pre-Sale from Friday, 1 April, 9am to Monday, 4 April, 9am; and to the general public from Tuesday, 5 April from 9am through www.ticketek.com.au
