Manchester united meets mandela

Longlivekeano

When 2 giants come together...

United hand tribute to Mandela

Manchester United presented Nelson Mandela with a personal club Opus after the former South Africa president dropped in on the touring party.

Mandela, who celebrated his 88th birthday on Tuesday, joked with the United players, including Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, after being introduced to them by manager Sir Alex Ferguson.

"I am meeting many of you for the first time - but I know your faces," he smiled.

The Red Devils manager then handed over the Opus to the Nelson Mandela Foundation, specially commissioned in addition to the exclusive print run of 10,000, bearing the inscription '46664', Mandela's prison number.

The 'Manchester United Opus' is a limited edition 850-page bible on the Red Devils which normally costs £3,000 to buy.

In addition, Ferguson also presented Mandela personal gifts of a United shirt bearing his name and a rare photograph taken for the Opus.

Earlier, the United contingent had wandered round the entrance of the Foundation, looking at a series of pictures depicting the struggle against apartheid in South Africa.

Afterwards, they watched a 15-minute film outlining the work of the Foundation, which is heavily involved in attempting to raise awareness to halt the spread of HIV and AIDS.

Ferguson paid his own personal tribute to Mandela, admitting it was 'an honour' to meet him, while Sir Bobby Charlton summed up the feeling of most in the United party.

"Many of the young people in this room will have no idea what you did in your life," he said.

"But they should all feel very humble because you are one of the most inspirational people that has ever lived."

http://www.teamtalk.com/football/sto...349513,00.html