Hong Kong’s Kai Tak Stadium staging the first North London derby to take place outside Britain has the power to change lives, according to former Arsenal star Bacary Sagna.
It was confirmed on Monday that Arsenal will meet fierce rivals Tottenham Hotspur in the city on July 31, five days after Liverpool and AC Milan become the first major football clubs to play at the new 50,000-capacity arena.
Liverpool and Tottenham last came to Hong Kong in 2017, Arsenal are returning for the first time since 2012, and Milan’s most recent trip was in 2004.
Former players from the clubs downplayed concerns over the travel demands on their successors, and said the pre-season matches offered a chance to start the new campaign on the right foot.
Sagna, who played for Arsenal from 2007 until 2014, said he developed into a 65-cap France international by “watching matches live”.
“Seeing players can change lives,” he said at the announcement at the Rosewood Hong Kong hotel. “People realise we’re not so different, then they witness the intensity of the game, the demands and discipline required for them to step up and maybe one day play in Europe.
