Watching Manchester United from the Centennial Suite
It’s been a while we wanted to visit Manchester. The perfect occasion to justify the road trip would be a football match, hence we got tickets for Manchester United vs AZ Alkmaar in the context of Europa League.
We woke up early and prepared the car for the 225 miles road trip from SE London to Manchester. A bit over 4 hours. Driving was not super enjoyable as it was raining quite heavily but the excitement was high. First time in Old Trafford.
We arrived around lunch time, checked in at the hotel and went for a walk in the Old Town. There was an interesting Christmas Market at Albert Square offering some good food, drinks and entertainment in the heart of the city. We spent some time there before heading to the gorgeous Cathedral on Victoria Street. This place is also a popular venue for exhibitions and concerts, so if you’re planning your trip to Manchester, keep an eye on the upcoming events. We enjoyed a little walk around and then took the tram to go back to Salford Quays where our hotel was. We dressed up a bit for the occasion as we were going to the Centennial Suite to watch the game. No jeans, trainers or football shirts were allowed in that area. At 4.45 pm we started to walk to Old Trafford, we passed the Sir Bobby Charlton Stand to enter the B1 gate in the Stretford End area. We collected our tickets and then they guided us to the Marriott Suite around 5.15 pm. The match kicked off at 8.00 pm so we had enough time to enjoy the full hospitality experience.
The match kicked off. The first half was interesting although no goals. AZ dominated. They truly showed they wanted to win the group as the 1st spot was at stake. However, the second half started and in 11 minutes Manchester United destroyed AZ Alkmaar with goals of Ashley Young (53’), Mason Greenwood (58’, 64’) and Juan Mata (62’). What a game and what a bright future ahead with Mason Greenwood, an 18-year-old player from Bradford who plays as a forward for Man U and the England’s U-21. Ole Solskjaer certainly made good choices with all the changes while keeping the experience with Mata, Young and Matic as they won the group. Looking at some stats, Man U had 49% possession but 7 shots on target out of 14 which might explain some of the goals. AZ was not too bad as they had 51% of possession and 4 shots on target out of 7, although didn’t manage to score.
The match finished so it was time to go back to the hotel and pack for the following day. What a day in Manchester and beautiful place to visit. Can’t thank enough to all the staff and Marriott for the moment. Unfortunately for us it was time to sleep and leave the following day. Our next stop Liverpool. Weather forecast unchanged: rain.
