Durban – Eighteen of Liverpool’s most famous football players arrived to sunny skies and camera flashes when they disembarked at Durban’s King Shaka International Airport yesterday morning.
Dressed in the signature red uniform, the team include the likes of Bruce Grobbelaar, Jason McAteer, John Barnes, Steve McManaman, David Fairclough, Robbie Fowler, Roy Evans, Patrik Berger and Vladimir Smicer, who will take on the Kaizer Chiefs Legends when they meet in a showpiece match at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban on Saturday.
Local legend and former defender Cyril “Skhokho” Zama and retired goalie Brian “Spiderman” Baloyi were among the former stars who came to welcome their illustrious opponents at the arrivals terminal.
Zama promised spectators and supporters “a lot more class than energy” during the match.
“I can’t wait to play against them. It’s really a good feeling, playing against guys I’m not used to playing against, so expect lots of class on the field,” he said.
Liverpool Legends midfielder Jason McAteer said he joined the legends team to help raise money for charity.
“Of course winning is an objective. Even though we are legends we have never lost our competitive edge. Above all else this is for charity and that’s a good reason to make money,” he said.
His Czech teammate, Patrik Berger, echoed those sentiments. “I personally work with a lot of charities, not just in Liverpool, but back home too. Yes, we look forward to a victory, but charity comes first,” he said.
Tour promoter Piet de Wet, who arrived with the team, said more tickets might be made available if they kept selling at the current rate.
“We made provision for 28 000 tickets for the game. We have already sold 25 000 of them,” he said.
Tickets cost from R45 to R90 at Computicket outlets across the country. The kick-off will be at 2pm on Saturday.
The Mercury