Main Photo: Santiago Kwok
“You will Never Win Anything with Kids”
– Alan Hansen – Match of the Day
In a near capacity Hong Kong Stadium and under the light drizzle, not unlike weather in Manchester, hushed tones whispered amongst the crowd about the ‘Kids’ who came to Hong Kong in 1997.
Over three decades ago, the now legends were still not 100% global household names. Scholes, Giggs, Butt, Beckham & the Neville brothers took on South China in a standard friendly and won.
Fast forward to 2025 and the grand old shell of Hong Kong stadium witnessed what could be the next generation of future Red Devil stars. Seemingly, the generational cycle has gone full circle.
Youngsters Chido Obi’s brace and Ayden Heaven’s header cancelled out Walter Soares opening 19th minute HK goal to give the beleaguered and exhausted Red Devils a 3-1 barely deserved victory.
Hong Kong played with passion and vigour while the Red Devils seemed to be going through the motions.
The older heads, Casemiro and Bruno Fernandes, both making less of an impact with the former coming off in the 27th minute and the latter no doubt distracted by a potential megabucks deal to Saudi Arabia.
The match had 33,000 fans in attendance though there were still gaps in the stadium. Photo: Ryan Kam
Past visits from Manchester United saw sold out capacity crowds. This game at Hong Kong stadium had gaps dotted around.
As this current Manchester United team have lurched from misfortune to occasional near disaster, save for an incredible 5-4 comeback against Lyon, even fans in their global fan base have had enough.
The recent defeat by the Asean All-Stars in Kuala Lumpur a new low on the field while the ‘rift’ between Garnacho & the club have been making headlines off the field.
Garnacho in Kuala Lumpur – Social Media
A Shadow That Looms Forever
Even in far away Hong Kong, the shadow of Sir Alexander Ferguson looms large. Standards and expectations were raised and have slowly dwindled through the years.
Erik ten Hag , Ralf Rangnick, Michael Carrick, Ole Gunnar Solskjær, José Mourinho, Louis van Gaal , Ryan Giggs and David Moyes have all tried and somewhat failed to emerge from the shadow of the ‘Boss.’
Amorim, the latest in the hot seat, was under no illusions that he was in a unique position. In the pre-match press conference, he remarked.
“You are more than a coach. You need to be an example!’
All empires falter and fall and for Ruben Amorim the season cannot end fast enough for a summer of respite and a chance to rebuild.
History Repeats Itself
History often repeats itself and there was a time that plain old Alex Ferguson was on the brink of allegedly being sacked if Manchester United did not win their fateful FA Cup 3rd round game against Nottingham Forest on January 7th 1990.
Mark Robins’s crucial goal set United on the road to endless titles and global domination over three decades.
Amorim will hope the cycle continues and that this season was a mere blip on the stepping stone to greater success.
Photo: Ryan Kam
The Kids Are Alright
In 1997, HK stadium welcomed ‘Fergie’s Fledglings’, who would go on and dominate for seasons.
Amorim’s 2025 generation of ‘Kids?’ in the same grand old stadium? We will have to see.
