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Beijing’s Manchester derby is off.
The meeting between City and United would have been the first Manchester derby to take place outside of England, but with hours remaining before kick off, the relentless rain in the Chinese capital saw the game cancelled.
The pitch in the Bird’s Nest Stadium, built for the 2008 Olympic Games in the city, had been deemed unplayable as a result of days of heavy rain. With the season just weeks ago, a decision to cancel the game was taken amid fears that playing on the pitch might result in injuries.
With the game off, many were quick to note that there was a certain irony about the reason for the match’s cancellation. Manchester is well known for its rainy weather, and the fact that a few heavy downpours had put paid to a game between the city’s two football sides on the other side of the world amused many.
Certain irony in a Manchester derby the other side of the world being called off because of rain#mufc #mcfc
— Francis Keogh (@HonestFrank) July 25, 2016
Hint of irony that a #ManchesterDerby that isn't being played in #Manchester has been postponed due to rain #MUFC #MCFC
— Shaun Farrelly (@ShaunFarrelly) July 25, 2016
https://twitter.com/chrisbollington/status/757476682236329985
Hold up
*irony alert*
Manchester derby called off because of bad weather in Beijing
They should be used to the shit weather in Manchester
— 𝙇𝙖𝙬𝙧𝙞𝙚 𝙇𝙚𝙚 (@lawrielee) July 25, 2016
The irony of a Manchester derby being cancelled due to rain…
— Bec ✵ (@aplacetohide) July 25, 2016
https://twitter.com/Dakeb_MCFC/status/757476423955312641
The Manchester derby been cancelled due to rain… But they are not playing in Manchester 😂🌂
— Erika (@ErikaMufc) July 25, 2016
https://twitter.com/olidunn/status/756193855259701248
Manchester City are due to face Borussia Dormund in Shenzen on Thursday, before travelling to Gotenburg to face Arsenal on Sunday August 7.
As for United, their next scheduled match will also be in Gothenburg. They face Turkish side Galatasaray at the weekend in a game that’s expected to be Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s first appearance in a United shirt.
