Manchester United will come!

Shanghai Shenhua will host Manchester United at Shanghai Stadium in July as the English Premier League side stop off in China as part of their pre-season tour of Asia. The visit will represent the second time that Man Utd have played in Shanghai following their first match here in 1999, a game that the English side won 2-0 with goals from Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

The first match in 1999

It remains to be seen exactly how many of the side's star players will appear in the city this time round, with the match far more of a marketing exercise than a serious pre-season warm up. Nevertheless, the local press is already talking up the prospect of reignited Premier League rivalries between the Manchester side and Shenhua's Nicolas Anelka and potential new recruit Didier Drogba.

Drogba(L) and Anelka(R)

Unfortunately, one name who may well be on the team sheet is that of Shenhua owner Zhu Jun. The controversial figure named himself in a Shenhua side yet again yesterday as the Shanghai team played out a 1-1 draw with an Argentinian XI in front of new manager Sergio Batista.

Zhu Jun--the owner of Shenhua Football Club

Zhu invited ridicule in 2007 when he appeared in a friendly against Liverpool before being hauled off after five minutes. He played the entire first half on May 31st(wearing number 11, the shirt supposedly reserved for Drogba), possibly as a warm up to pulling on a Shenhua shirt again to play Man Utd on Wednesday 25 July.