Aaron Wan-Bissaka reveals how lost passport almost got in the way of Man Utd move
Aaron Wan-Bissaka has revealed how he lost his passport the night before he was due to flight out to meet up with his new Manchester United teammates for the very first time.
Wan-Bissaka shot to stardom at Crystal Palace in 2018, before making the £50m move to United in the summer of 2019.
Writing for The Players' Tribune about his life and career, the 23-year-old right back explained how he'd actually planned on staying at Palace longer, but couldn't turn down a move to United who he describes as 'the biggest club in the world'.
'There’s a lot you don’t know about Aaron Wan-Bissaka.
— Players' Tribune Football (@TPTFootball) July 16, 2021
So, let me tell you about the journey that made me who I am today.'
✍️ @awbissaka https://t.co/TS62oIdgHi
He also revealed how a lost passport just before United's pre-season tour of Australia might have signalled a bad start following his big-money transfer. However, being the super-club that they are, United were ably to sort out the situation quickly.
After I signed, I went on holiday to Ibiza for a few days with some friends to relax, before the transfer was officially announced," Wan-Bissaka wrote. "I celebrated out there once it was all public, but it still hadn’t sunk in … 'Im a Manchester United player now?'
"But the biggest reality check actually happened shortly after, when my passport went missing.
"The next day, I had to leave Ibiza to meet up with the squad for the first time and fly out to Australia for the preseason tour.
"This was the first time I would meet my teammates. The first time I would represent United. My first day of work, basically. But my passport was gone. Just gone.
"I started to panic. I searched the villa everywhere. I was just thinking, 'How is this gonna work? I gotta be in Australia on Sunday! I haven’t even met my teammates yet … What kind of first impression is this!'
However, a call to the defender's new club quickly got things back on track.
"In the end, my agent called United and explained what had happened," he wrote. "Let’s just say… They had my back. I don’t know how but they sorted it.
"Within a day – a day – they got me a new passport. That’s Manchester United, I guess!"
Read the full piece on The Players Tribune here.