United to star in Aviva opener
The match will precede by a week the much-anticipated first international at the new home of Irish football when Ireland face Argentina in a friendly game on August 11.
The FAI have also confirmed that the domestic league side for the game against United will be managed by former Shelbourne, Shamrock Rovers and Cork City boss Damien Richardson.
Welcoming the official announcement of the fixture, Richardson said: “Representative football is something which I feel can be extremely beneficial to the league, both in terms of publicity and experience. The Airtricity League is represented in international competition by the Republic of Ireland U23s, and today’s announcement will give players from our domestic game another important opportunity to showcase their abilities. It will be an honour for me to manage the League side and I am really looking forward to the challenge of taking on Manchester United.”
Alex Ferguson told the United website last night he is ‘really looking forward to going back to Dublin’ with the club for the first time since 2002 and a friendly match against Shelbourne which United won 5-0.
“We have a massive fanbase in Ireland,” said the United boss. “It will be great to play a match on their home turf and I know the Irish supporters will make the atmosphere very special.”
Given that the game will be part of their build-up to the new Premiership season, Manchester United are expected to bring a strong squad to Dublin and, according to the club’s chief executive David Gill, the game will only help to cement historic ties between Ireland and one of the world’s most famous clubs.
“It is a great honour to have been invited to play the opening football match in the magnificent Aviva Stadium,” said Gill.
“Anyone who has visited Old Trafford on a match day knows the strength of Manchester United’s support in Ireland.
“Their loyalty and willingness to undertake long trips to support their team is remarkable. The players always enjoy their visits to Ireland and I’m sure this occasion will be a memorable one.”
FAI chief John Delaney is also looking forward to the occasion and also to the ensuing fixtures at the new stadium which will be officially opened tomorrow by Taoiseach Brian Cowen.
“We are delighted that the first football match to take place in Aviva stadium will see a representative Airtricity League side in action against one of the top club sides in the world,” said Delaney.
“Along with the friendly match against Argentina on August 11 and our two home European Championship qualifying matches, football fans are in for an eventful autumn at Aviva Stadium.”
Meanwhile the FAI also announced yesterday that tickets for the games against Paraguay on May 25 and Algeria on May 28, are now on sale through www.fai.ie and at the FAI Umbro store in Carrolls, Westmoreland St, Dublin.
A two match ticket, North and South stands, costs €65 and €85 for the Anglesea/Grandstand. Schoolboy/girl tickets for both games are also being made available for €10 through schoolboy/girl leagues.
Ahead of the gathering of his troops on Sunday for a training camp, senior international manager Giovanni Trapattoni said: “It will be important to test ourselves against strong international opposition before going into the Euro campaign in September. During the World Cup qualification campaign, our squad made solid progress and we intend to build on that now.”
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