Connor Chapman is excited to face some of his boyhood idols when the A-League All Stars take on Manchester United.
Hunter Ports Newcastle Jets defender Connor Chapman says he is excited by the prospect of sharing the field with some of his boyhood idols when the Foxtel A-League All Stars take on Manchester United at ANZ Stadium on Saturday night.
The 18-year-old central defender said he was surprised by his call-up to the All Stars squad and is looking forward to facing the reigning English Premier League Champions.
“I was a little bit shocked and to be honest I thought someone was playing a joke on me to start with, but once I got into camp with the rest of the boys in Sydney, it finally started to sink in,” Chapman said
“The closer we-re getting to the game, the more excited everyone in our squad is becoming.
“I-m just happy to be here for the experience and if I get a chance to play, hopefully I can do well.
“I-m just going to go out there and do my best and see what happens.”
Chapman said it would be a surreal experience marking the likes EPL Golden Boot winner Robin van Persie and sharing a field with United-s countless other stars.
“To think I could be defending someone like Robin van Persie is pretty crazy, but it will be a great challenge and something I-m really looking forward to,” Chapman said.
“I-ve looked up to someone like Rio Ferdinand his whole career, so to be on the same field as him would be unbelievable, and it will be an honour to go up against players of that calibre.”
Chapman said he was planning to take as much as he could from spending a week in camp with the Foxtel A-League All Stars and learning from some of the competition-s top talents.
“There are a lot of quality players here in the All Stars squad and it-s a great experience to be able to train with some of the best players in the A-League,” Chapman said.
“I-m just focusing on trying to do well in training and learning as much as I can from the whole experience.”
