Pre-season Manchester derby in doubt

Monday's pre-season clash between Manchester City and Manchester United could be cancelled due to adverse weather conditions in Beijing.

The friendly, which will see old rivals Pep Guardiola and Jose Mourinho face off for the first time in three years, is due to take place at the 91,000-seater Bird's Nest Stadium on Monday.

The Chinese capital has been plagued by heavy thunderstorms for the last week, however, and with more rain expected over the weekend, the match could be called off.

"It's a concern," said Ben Xiaozheng, spokesman for the International Champions Cup. "The weather has been really bad. But we're hopeful the game will go ahead."

A United spokesman added: "We are aware of the bad weather in Beijing, but also that the organisers are working very hard on getting the game to go ahead."

The Bird's Nest is expected to be close to capacity for the first ever meeting of the two sides away from English soil.