Source:REUTERS/Angelina Katsanis
[Saba Sports News] Manchester is set to play a friendly match against Leeds United in Stockholm, Sweden. Media have raised the question of why Manchester United often holds pre-season matches in Northern Europe. The Red Devils will start their pre-season campaign this Saturday afternoon in Sweden, facing Leeds United in their first match. The club hopes to move past the shadow of their worst Premier League season in history and begin a new chapter. Manchester will face this Championship team first in Stockholm, and this match will test the team’s condition. Leeds United won the Championship last season and returned to the top flight after one year. Notably, although it has not been officially confirmed, Manchester United has long had a tradition of training in the Scandinavian Peninsula. The Red Devils have deep ties with Sweden; three players in the club’s history have served as captains of the Swedish national team—Henrik Larsson, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, and Victor Lindelof, who recently left the club on a free transfer. Old Trafford has also witnessed the presence of three other Swedes: Jesper Blomqvist, a member of the 1999 treble-winning team, and youth products Anthony Elanga and Bojan Jokic. In recent years, Manchester United and Leeds United have also frequently held pre-season matches in Northern Europe, meeting in Norway in 2015 and 2023.