Skip to content

Report: Manchester United's plane diverted to Tianjin due to bad weather

VCG / Visual China Group / Getty

Manchester United reportedly made an unscheduled stop on Saturday during the club's pre-season tour of China.

According to Jamie Jackson of the Guardian, United's plane was forced to divert to Tianjin, China as it was flying to Beijing, the capital of the country, because of inclement weather. The Red Devils are in East Asia as part of the International Champions Cup and will take on Manchester City at the National Stadium on Monday.

Memphis Depay took to Twitter during the incident but couldn't specify where exactly United's plane landed, saying: "We are lost somewhere, we had to make a quick landing somewhere. We tried to fly to Beijing but the weather is a little bit bad so we had to land somewhere else."

United eventually arrived safely in Beijing on Monday, but another issue arose when Jose Mourinho's press conference was moved at the last minute. A spokesman for the Red Devils said the allotted room was "too full and hot," so the event took place outside, where the media contingent was allegedly kept waiting for half an hour until the Special One walked outside.

There was reportedly some confusion about whether Mourinho would field any questions, but he did and didn't hesitate to criticise the conditions, saying: "It is the end and we can almost go home and train in conditions where the players are safe."

Pep Guardiola apparently gave a press conference in the same room earlier in the day, leading many to wonder why Mourinho was unable to do so as well.

Daily Newsletter

Get the latest trending sports news daily in your inbox