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Old Trafford sees record fan turnout of 71,965 for Soccer Aid charity match and raises £5.5m funds

England win Soccer Aid 2018

Old Trafford, Manchester United’s home ground, was the host of the biannual Soccer Aid for UNICEF match that featured a number of stars from the world of football and more.

The event saw a record fan turnout of 71,965 and raised £5.5million for global work with disadvantaged children. Some of the stars on display for the two sides were David Seaman, Jaap Stam, Michael Owen, Eric Cantona, Phil Neville, Edwin van der Sar, Clarence Seedorf, Usain Bolt and Juan Sebastian Veron.

The two sides were split into a World XI captained by Bolt and an England side captained by Olly Murs.

Goals galore at Soccer Aid

The scoring started with Darren Bent shooting past Van der Sar before the English team made it 2-0 when Jeremy Lynch volleyed the ball into the net.

It was then time for the World XI to get into the act as Robbie Keane scored before former United midfielder Veron made it 2-2 on the night.

It was then time for the World XI to take the lead as former AC Milan star Seedorf made it 3-2. Cantona also received a huge ovation but it was England who made it 3-3 thanks to Owen slotting the ball into the net in the 82nd minute.

Penalties were next on the cards and it was Blake Harrison who scored the winning spot-kick after three misses from the World XI team.

The Soccer Aid match has been held since 2006 to help UNICEF and the event was a grand success this time too. It was great to see some of the legends of the game returning for one night and there is no doubt that the fans had a fantastic evening watching the likes of Cantona, Seedorf, Robert Pires and more at Old Trafford.

Written by Thomas Hein

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