With all the fanfare that has greeted Manchester United’s arrival here in Rostov on-Don, it is easy to forget that there is another team contesting tonight’s Europa League last-16 tie in Russia. As José Mourinho sat playing cards with his assistant Rui Faria in the lobby at the Mercure Hotel in Rostov last night, scores of United fans stood outside, clutching their scarves and autograph books in the near sub-zero temperatures hoping to meet the self-styled “Special One” and his players. It is something that the United squad and their vast entourage have had to get used to since they landed in Russia on Tuesday. Everywhere they have been, their fans have followed. United may be 1,800 miles from home, but the club’s global pull…

Source: The Times March 09, 2017 12:07 UTC