Manchester City may have been fearing the worst when they landed in Hong Kong on Tuesday after some strong turbulence on their flight. There were some disappointed locals waiting outside the Rosewood Hotel as the team bus pulled in and a set of weary players headed straight for their beds.
That was about as bumpy as it got for the Blues in Hong Kong though as they made sunshine out of the rain that engulfed the city. While it is monsoon season, City picked an unusually bad time to arrive with the islands on the edge of a typhoon and subject to thunderstorms and torrential rain for almost all of their time here.
It may have killed off hopes that some of the players had to reach Victoria Peak and look down on everything below and the time zone jump left some short of sleep, yet out of the gloom came a bonus for Enzo Maresca. Sweltering temperatures usually make it almost impossible to train, so a cooler and more blustery Hong Kong than they could have envisaged when the trip was booked meant it was possible for the players to get some proper work done.
The manager held individual meetings with some players and was hands-on with everyone in training to try and get his messages across, and the bonus of the closed roof at the Kai Tak Stadium meant that not all of City’s training sessions were exposed to the rain, and on Friday and Saturday they worked with air conditioning at the stadium that made it cooler than Manchester.
There were obviously some difficulties because of the humidity and Monday’s session was on an artificial pitch, but the stormy breezes made it more of a breeze than the last time City were here and Guardiola decided it was too hot to do any work. Mind you, the last time City came they ended up at the centre of a political protest so the weather wasn’t the only improvement.
Off the pitch, the work to ingratiate themselves with Hong Kong began before they arrived. The team bus arrived at the hotel with a makeover after local street artist Bao was invited to add a local flavour to it, while creative studio OffGod:Tate worked with Puma to create a limited edition font for the away kit that was worn for the Inter friendly.
Hong Kong is a place where there is so much going on in every building from floor to sky so you really have to capture people’s attention and imagination, and Puma launching the strip on a floating pitch in Victoria Harbour certainly did that. A ticketed event helped to create a buzz and City also cashed in with pop-up stores in the mall next to the stadium and they sold out of the limited edition prints; supporters in Real Madrid and Bayern shirts were among those to turn up and buy City merchandise.
To say the squad was missing Erling Haaland and some of their other more high-profile players, City certainly put the ones that were here to work. Multiple activities were organised across the week with most of the squad, including community sessions working with local children and charities and a collaboration between Gianluigi Donnarumma and a local tour guide.
Ruben Dias and Matheus Nunes joined up with the squad earlier than they could have done and it was a senior delegation of players that headed into China to the headquarters of BYD, who have recently become a major City sponsor. With the Inter game sponsored by Asahi Super Dry, there was plenty of effort made to please sponsors.
The local organisers and media were also happy with the access provided to City players, with some grumbles already about what Chelsea are offering up by comparison after they arrived on Monday. As well as the current players, David Silva entertained guests at a private dinner where Maresca also spoke as guests were reminded of the club greats that have passed through previously.
All eyes are on Maresca as he follows the great Guardiola but he cut a relaxed figure in public, confident enough in his ability to give off a relaxed air and funny enough to make people laugh. It will be hotter in Seoul but City’s start to their summer tour has been nicely chilled.
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