The Manchester United squad going through their paces in a training session. Fifth in the standings, ten Hag’s side will face a stern test on Sunday when they go up against champions and bitter rivals Man City, who are in second place. — Reuters
THERE will be a football feast on the return of the English Premier League after the international break, with Manchester City being the highlight on Sunday.
A few fans from the capital, or maybe more, may disagree with that, given the North London derby between Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur in the early kick-off tomorrow.
All the same, there is a lot of action to be enjoyed and for some, a special treat awaits.
As part of its rewards programme for customers, Astro has invited the winners of its “Clash of the Manchesters” contest to a viewing party at SOULed Out in Desa Sri Hartamas, Kuala Lumpur, tomorrow, when champions Man City welcome bitter rivals Man United to the Etihad in what should be a cracker.
The Manchester derby event at SOULed Out is part of a series of viewing parties hosted by Astro for its customers who are passionate about football, particularly the Premier League.
The package for the winners comes with two tickets to the event.
Each ticket entitles the holder to a door gift and a chance to win lucky draw prizes, alongside the food and beverages served during the evening.
In a statement, Astro said: “This is part of our season-long series of viewing parties for football fans and customers, and what better way to catch the clash of Manchesters than to be part of a crowd of roaring fans?”
The match will see the coming together of world-class players on a world-class stage.
Man United, who have been through a lot in the last decade and have fallen on hard times, will believe they can go to the Etihad and come away with something.
Much of this renewed spirit is borne from an outlay of more than £240mil (RM1.2bil) in the off-season transfer window.
With the arrival of new manager Erik ten Hag, Man United also brought in Antony, Lisandro Martinez, Casemiro and Tyrell Malacia, and signed Christian Eriksen as a free agent.
This has lifted the squad and instilled a new belief in the side, so much so that they feel confident of their chances in taking on and beating Man City.
But the Citizens have not been idling either. They bought Erling Haaland, Kalvin Phillips, Sergio Gomez, Stefan Ortega and Manuel Akanji for a total sum of £125mil (RM629mil) and look sharp so far.
More than a few headlines have gone to Haaland, who has been nothing short of special in the opening fixtures of the new season.
The winners of Astro’s contest and the others invited to the viewing will be as keen as everybody else to see how he fares against an improved Red Devils backline.
For those interested in entering the next contest, Astro said it is open to all Astro Sports Pack customers, who have to log on to rewards.astro.com.my and locate the contest page.
“Once there, they will need to click on ‘proceed’ to acquire a unique contest code and access the entry form, answer three questions, provide the contest code, complete all their particulars and read and accept the terms and conditions before submitting,” said the Astro media statement.
