 The Vodafone Cup | |
World club champions Boca Juniors have resolved a fixture pile-up by insisting: "We're going to Old Trafford."
The Argentine giants were named in May with Manchester United, PSV Eindhoven and Urawa Red Diamonds as participants in the inaugural Vodafone Cup on August 3 and 5.
But their attendance at the Theatre of Dreams was threatened when it emerged they had also entered a smaller event at Leicester City the previous weekend.
The Buenos Aires-based club, who recently reached the final of the Copa Libertadores - the South American equivalent of the Champions League - have now scratched from the Leicester event.
Urawa, whose own nickname is The Reds, face Boca Juniors on Tuesday, August 3, before doing battle two nights later with United.
The second game on the opening evening is United against Ruud Van Nistelrooy's former club PSV Eindhoven while the opener on Thursday, August 5, pitches Boca against PSV.
Meanwhile, controversial Turk Alpay could be set for a stormy first appearance back on English soil at Old Trafford. The former Aston Villa defender, who left English football in disgrace shortly after his verbal assault on David Beckham last autumn, has signed for Urawa Red Diamonds.
Villa drummed Alpay out of the Premiership by paying up his contract after deciding his incredible spat with Beckham in the Euro 2004 qualifier left him carrying too much baggage.
He subsequently joined Incheon United in Korea but has now pitched up in Japan. |