Robson's View On United In China

Manchester United legend Bryan Robson was in China earlier this year for the launch of Tour 2016, presented by Aon, and he'll be travelling with the team during next week's trip for the matches against Borussia Dortmund and Manchester City.

In an exclusive interview with ManUtd.com, the former Reds captain looks back over his previous visits to the country and discusses the pre-season ahead for United...

What kind of reaction can we expect from the fans when the team arrive in China?
The support we have in Asia is always great and football is growing all the time there, especially in China. The passion the fans have is incredible, even I've noticed that by the fact that, I don’t know where they've got my address from, but I've been sent loads of letters from Chinese students to my house asking for photos and autographs! I think everybody in China enjoys the Premier League, the interest in that continues to grow, and it's great for the club to make the trip over there to meet the fans.

You played in Asia with United in 1984, what are your memories of that?
It was a great experience but I'd also played in China in 1979 with West Brom when we played five games. To come back in 1984 and see how everything had improved and how the football had come on in China was a really good experience and I’m really looking forward to going again.

What are your standout memories of visiting Asia as a United ambassador?
I think the enthusiasm that the fans show; they get really excited and just love football, and they love to be around the team and anyone connected to the club to get photos and get things signed.

What do you think about Shanghai and Beijing as cities?
They're great places but completely different; you've got the history and culture of Beijing compared to the modernisation of Shanghai. They're both really good cities to visit.

You mentioned the growth of the Premier League in China, what are your thoughts on the growth of the Chinese Super League?
You can see it's getting bigger every year. They’re starting to attract top players from around the world and that then interests the fans because supporters want to see top players in their own league. Their league is really competitive now and I think it will only get bigger.

And they’re buying players still at a good level as opposed to players right at the end of their careers…
Yeah, I agree with that. I think America had that problem years ago too. When you think back to when the Super League in China began [in 2004], they were getting players who were in their last year or two of their careers. Now they’re attracting players who are still at their peak of their career so that can only be good for Chinese football.

We'll play two games in China during Tour 2016 against Dortmund and City - what can we expect from them?
Those are great games. You've seen how well Dortmund have done in the last few years and, behind Bayern Munich, you’d probably say they’re the biggest team in Germany. Dortmund have some fabulous players and are a very good team, so that’ll be a good challenge. Then there's the derby game - it's a match you always want to win. It'll be a treat for the fans to experience a derby game.

When you hear the word pre-season what immediately springs to mind?
I always quite enjoyed pre-season. It's a time when you look to get your match fitness, but you can also relax a bit because there’s no pressure on you. Of course, you want to win the games and get your fitness up, but there isn’t really any pressure like when you're playing important league and cup games.

How important is pre-season for getting the players ready for the start of the campaign?
That’s why pre-season games are important, the players have got to go about things in the same way they would go about a league game because you’re preparing for that first one. You want to be right at the top of your fitness come day one of the season in order to get off to a good start.

How important are tours for young players trying to break into the first team?
It’s a great experience for the young boys because they can mix with the experienced boys, see how they prepare and how they conduct themselves. It's also great for the young lads to see the culture of the Chinese people and visit cities like Shanghai and Beijing. That’s a great experience for them as well as getting settled in with the older players and seeing what the tours and life in the first team is all about.