Manchester United and Manchester City confirm that their pre-season friendly in Beijing will not be rescheduled after it was cancelled due to an unplayable pitch.
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Monday night’s Champions Cup friendly between Manchester City and Manchester United was cancelled due to the extreme pitch conditions of the National Stadium in Beijing.
The International Champions Cup and its participating clubs thanked and apologized to fans in China and around the world who were planning to attend the match or watch the match broadcast.
Manchester United vice-chairman Ed Woodward said today he was sad to have the club’s Chinese fans lose a rare opportunity to see their heroes in the flesh.
United head coach Mourinho versus City counterpart Guardiola is set to be a standout rivalry in this season’s English Premier League (EPL), with the two coaches in close proximity for the first time since their days in charge of Real Madrid and Barcelona.
The original Bird’s Nest Stadium pitch had been blighted by a fungal problem.
United were heading to the Chinese capital to face Manchester City on Monday, which is a match that is already in doubt due to the heavy downpours in the area.
“Due to worldwide travel schedules and planned sporting commitments, the match cancellation is definitive and the match will not be re-scheduled”. “I am sure we will return to the Bird’s Nest in the future”.
“But in a match it’s more hard so, again, I hope our players and City’s players go home without any kind of injury to start the competitive period well”, Mourinho said.
“It’s sad for us, it’s sad for our fans”, he said.
“I just want to thank the fans that have shown so much support to us, the passion they have shown has been overwhelming at times and has been fantastic and hopefully we’ll be coming back soon”.
“We’re moving on now to Shenzhen to play against Borussia Dortmund now, so it’s not finished for us in China, but obviously it’s a big disappointment for us”.
He also admitted he couldn’t wait to return to Manchester and begin training with his full squad. I think it builds up for the next time we come here that’ll be an even bigger event but in the meantime like I said we just have to get on with it.
“It’s been a special experience and everything in China has been greater than life itself nearly”.
“But for training we can control the situation by doing very little and by not bringing the players into risky situations”.
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Fans who have purchased tickets to the cancelled match can seek a refund directly from their original point of purchase (no higher than face value at the time the ticket was originally purchased).
