GEPA/USA TODAY Sports
Sir Alex Ferguson is reported to have booked a hip operation which could possibly see him miss the start of the new Premier League season.
The Manchester United manager, 71, is believed to have had the operation booked for early August, following the club’s pre-season tour of the Far East and Australia. Currently, the tour is set to finish with the final fixture on the 29th of July in Hong Kong against Kitchee FC. Following that there is the Community Shield fixture at Wembley on August 11th where United will face either Manchester City or Wigan Athletic.
The current Premier League season began on August 20th, so presuming a similar date was selected again, the news of an operation doesn’t definitely rule out Sir Alex Ferguson’s presence as United begin their defense of the League title – as most weekend newspapers are suggesting.
United’s pre-season tours are far more high-profile than most English clubs as their vast worldwide fan base is given the chance to watch the club play in their local regions. In the past, Ferguson has used the period to not just bring the squad’s fitness levels up but build a strong togetherness and correct mind set, especially for any new additions. So it makes sense that Ferguson would make sure he won’t miss the club’s tour, or at least the majority of it for his operation.
Ferguson missed the final pre-season fixture vs Hannover 96 last year, so again, it wouldn’t be a surprise if we see him miss the Kitchee FC game this time around and leave the managerial duties to assistant Mike Phelan rather than the start of the Premier League campaign.
Stowe Gregory is an English featured Soccer and Sports writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him or tweet on Twitter @stowegregory. Or add to circles on Google +
You can read about his piece on ‘The appeal of Borrussia Dortmund’ here.
