Manchester United were saved from football boot chaos by a Liverpool fan after several players saw their Champions League luggage go missing.
Red Devils in European footballPreparations far from idealForced to buy boots & shin padsFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?
Marc Skinner’s side were in Norway for the third qualifying round of the 2025-26 Women’s Champions League. They ended up suffering a shock 1-0 defeat to Brann in that contest, with pre-match preparations proving to be far from ideal.
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During the Red Devils’ trip to the city of Bergen, a bag containing players’ boots went missing. That forced those left without suitable footwear to visit a local sports shop and stock up – with shin pads also failing to make it from Manchester to Scandinavia.
WHAT NAALSUND SAID
United midfielder Lisa Naalsund, who is from Bergen, told : "Some shoes went missing. We haven’t quite figured out where they are yet. It was just before we left for the stadium, so it was a bit chaotic. It’s not ideal for anyone to have to play with new shoes. We’d rather avoid that happening."
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Andre Gullord, who owns Torshov Sport, came to the rescue. He is a Liverpool fan and enjoyed a surprising boost to his daily sales figures due to the issues being endured by arch-rivals. Gullord told : "They bought about 13 to 15 pairs of football boots and 20 pairs of shin pads. The boots had firm-ground studs instead of metal studs. The latter are typically used on soft, wet surfaces – like the conditions in Bergen on Thursday night.
"Two members of staff arrived around 16:30. They just said that they needed some shoes because they haven’t got some luggage. I think it was very weird because all the football players in Norway take their football boots in their hand luggage.
"They bought the top models, Nike’s Mercurial vapor and Adidas predators. They cost between £230 and £250. Football shoes are expensive in Norway. Shin pads cost around £25 to £30.
"We were surprised when they came into the shop, particularly one of the biggest clubs in the whole world to buy football boots. We just sell football boots to local players. It was very cool."
He added: "When David Beckham was around 17 to 18 years old, playing for Manchester United, he was in a football school over here with Brian McClair. I was working in the shop and he had lost his boots when he came here as well. I think I was the only person who has sold football shoes to David Beckham. He bought a pair of Adidas Copa Mundial from me, the most famous Adidas boot."
