Korean City fans brave the heat for a glimpse of Grealish

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Korean City fans brave the heat for a glimpse of Grealish

Published: 29 Jul. 2023, 13:23 Updated: 02 Aug. 2023, 15:30

Manchester City midfielder Jack Grealish waves to fans at the Puma City pop-up event at Lotte World Mall in southern Seoul on Saturday. [NEWS1]

Thousands of Korean football fans lined up for hours in temperatures well over 30 degrees Celsius (86 degrees Fahrenheit) for a chance to see Manchester City stars including Jack Grealish, Ederson and Kyle Walker in person at Lotte World Mall in southern Seoul on Saturday.

People began to gather from 8 a.m. to claim a good spot on the barriers at the Puma City fan event, with thousands of fans claiming their spot to catch a glimpse of Grealish by 10:30, still an hour and a half before the City midfielder and his teammates were set to arrive in Jamsil.

By midday the venue was packed, with fans lined up on balconies up to the fifth floor and crowded outside when Grealish, Ederson, Walker, Manuel Akanji, U-23 forward Oscar Bobb and Manchester City Women’s star Laia Aleixandri entered.

The six players took to the stage, posing with the Puma City logo. They were presented with specially-made Manchester City jeogori, the upper garment of the traditional Korean hanbok, with their names embroidered on the back.

Manchester City players pose with a specially-made City hanbok, or Korean traditional dress, at Lotte World Mall in southern Seoul on Saturday. [NEWS1]

Some brief questions followed, with Grealish visibly excited to spot the “Korean Grealish” — a Korean fan from Busan who arrived in Jamsil with Grealish-esque facial hair drawn on and an upper-body cutout of the England star — at the front of the crowd.

After signing some autographs — Grealish unsurprisingly made a beeline straight for his Korean doppelganger — the players headed back to the bus.

Manchester City's Jack Grealish, left, and Ederson react after spotting a fan in the crowd with a drawn-on copy of Grealish's facial hair. [NEWS1]

Grealish, Ederson, Akanji, Walker and Bobb were back in action on Saturday evening in a Manchester City open training session at Seoul World Cup Stadium in southern Seoul, ahead of the club’s preseason friendly against La Liga side Atletico Madrid at the same venue Sunday.

Aleixandri, meanwhile, headed straight to Seoul World Cup Stadium after Saturday's event to lead the Manchester City "Youth Football Academy in Korea" alongside the club's coaching staff.

In partnership with Puma, Aleixandri led a football clinic for young girls from three local elementary schools. Players were divided into groups depending on the positions they play in and then led through specialized coaching and drills specific to that position. Aleixandri, who plays as a defender for both City and the Spanish national team, led the defense training and answered questions and took photos with all participating students.

When the clinic ended, the participants stayed in the stadium to watch the men's team train.

A large number of Korean football fans wearing City jerseys gathered at the stadium to see City’s open training session, where their skills were on display. The fans started out loud and only got louder when they saw Erling Haaland step onto the pitch shortly after other players came on.

City divided their squad in two groups and played a short practice game, showing the fans what the team will offer in Sunday’s match.

Kevin De Bruyne also took part in the training and put on a show, despite his injury.

The training ended with the City players applauding the fans’ support, with some players, including De Bruyne took pictures with the fans and autographed their jerseys after training.

BY JIM BULLEY [jim.bulley@joongang.co.kr]