Inside Man Utd's doomed Asia trip with players running out of money and awkward bus parade

players are said to have been furious when they learned that their disastrous season would be extended to a tour of Asia. Just hours after they ended their campaign with a rare win over Aston Villa, stars boarded a flight that would see them travel nearly 15,000 miles for two friendlies in Malaysia and Hong Kong.

That flight was reportedly booked so close to the full-time whistle because some players had incredibly threatened to withdraw at the last minute. According to the , stars had talked among themselves about 'crying off'. Many had to cancel family holidays in the week of May half-term, or watch their partners and children jet off without them. On the trip, things did not really get any better.

Just days into the tour, wingers Amad Diallo and Alejandro Garnacho were filmed . Seemingly out of cash, a TikTok video shows the United duo asking locals to foot the bill and help them set up the vehicles. Defender Ayden Heaven also seemed to struggle.

All three took the minor embarrassment in good spirits and posed for photos with the people who had helped. Other engagements with fans had actually been formally organised, including a bizarre open-top bus trip through the streets of Malaysia.

It is unclear if all players took part, but Heaven, Joshua Zirkzee and Matthijs de Ligt all smiled and waved as passers-by looked on with some bemusement. United reportedly insist that the event was not scheduled with parading the Europa League trophy in mind.

Later in the day, there was a familiar sound as United's stars trudged off to boos. If recent defeats against Tottenham, Chelsea, West Ham and Brentford had been soul-destroying, curated from south-east Asian national teams was something quite different.

This was certainly not on the same level of importance as those other games, but it was a result that was never going to go down well at home. Perhaps some players had even feared it as the worst possible outcome when boarding the plane.

United did sign off with a win. After going a goal down against the Hong Kong national team, a Chido Obi brace and a Heaven goal sealed a 3-1 triumph. Although it was not the Europa League, United ended the season by lifting a trophy. That would have been a pleasing way to end a tour that surely no player was desperately keen to attend.