FANGZHUO DONG

21. FANGZHUO DONG

Dong Fangzhuo had to be patient to become the first ever Chinese player at Old Trafford. Having joined United in January 2004, he spent two years on loan at Royal Antwerp until he was eligible to play in England.

In his first season in Belgium, he was the league's top scorer with 17 goals, and scored 35 goals in 61 games during his time at Antwerp.

On United's 2005 Asia tour, Dong pulled on the red shirt for the first time in a friendly against Hong Kong XI and scored in the 2-0 win. Last summer he got the winning goal in a 1-0 win over Kaizer Chiefs during the 2006 pre-season

tour of South Africa.

Sir Alex says: "He is quick and athletic and he can only improve by training with the first team squad here." The United boss also praised the young striker for showing "great patience and determination at Royal Antwerp" to eventually become a United player.

There is often confusion over the spelling of his name. His surname is Dong, first name Fangzhuo, which is often spelt incorrectly as Fangzhou. In China, the family name (in this case Dong) comes first, which often causes confusion in countries and cultures where family names appear last.