Man U in Beijing

I was at the gym on Sunday afternoon. emerged to see that the lobby and entrances of Kerry Centre Hotel were cordoned off. must be some big-shot coming. kapo old me went to ask the hotel securty that were standing around. "Man Lian" (that's Man U in mandarin). oooo I see!

the Man U fan in me screamed! quick, run home (300metres away), change into Man U jersey, grab digital camera and run back to take photos! I could see a handful of red-shirts gathering outside the hotel. but the slacker in me said "for what? wait kena beat up by security" which was what happened to some Real Madrid fans. they got into scuffles with over-zealous security people at Kunlun Hotel where the galacticos were staying...

guess what? the slacker won! turns out I was right. apparently, the hotel security did beat up some reporters. anyways, here are some pics that I didn't risk life and limb to get. courtesy of qianlong.com

apart from Keane (injured?), I think practically the full squad is coming to Beijing; Rooney, Ronaldo, van Nistelrooy and Rio Ferdinand. btw, Rio was greeted by a banner outside the hotel,"Rio? how much money do you want?" (donno whether the "england" correct or not. read about this in chinese papers). Man U is also parading their Chinese import, striker Dong Fangzhuo (now on loan to Antwerp). Rumours has it that Ryan Giggs might be swapped for Owen in a deal with Real Madrid.

anyways, Real Madrid left town with bags of money and their reputation in shreds. many Chinese fans (incidentally Real is more popular here than Man U for some reason) are now berating Real Madrid for being bloodsuckers and bad attitude. for their 90min exhibition match with Beijing Hyundai, Real banked in 3 million euros. (I donno why fans will pay hundreds of yuan to watch the match when it's being telecasted on CCTV. I think now they'r feeling ripped off). their stars and officials were criticised for being late for the press conference. some team members were lambasted for helping themselves (bian lui, everything free one!) at an endorsement event for local garment brand. we shall see how Man U fare...