Manchester United cancel Indonesia trip after bomb blasts
Manchester United's pre-season tour was thrown into chaos yesterday when they were forced to cancel the Indonesian leg after a bombing at the Jakarta hotel where they were due to stay next week.
Sir Alex Ferguson's team arrived in Kuala Lumpur from England to be told about the carnage in the Indonesian capital, where at least nine people were killed and more than 40 were injured. They were due to play an Indonesian All-Star squad on Monday and were booked into the Ritz-Carlton. But the hotel, along with the JW Marriott in the city centre, were hit by explosions at around 8:00 am (0100 GMT). The team sought the advice of the British High Commission before abandoning the leg of a tour that also sees them visit South Korea and China. "We are shocked," Ferguson said. We just got the news as we landed here and we are terribly disappointed because we've never been to Indonesia before.
"The organisers have worked very hard to get us over there and it is disappointing for them too. There's no other decision we could have taken in regards to the safeguarding of our players. We feel we've made the right decision."
The decision to pull out is a blow for United who have a huge fan base in Indonesia and numerous commercial partners, making their tour as much about business as football.
Despite the blasts, their match against a Malaysian XI here on Saturday will go ahead and Ferguson has brought a 22-man squad.
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