Manchester United players mostly stick to business

As a Manchester United player, Ji-Sung Park has traveled the world — and seen surprisingly little of it.

“You get to see the world, but actually you don't have much time to see around cities or somewhere else,” Park said Friday at Manchester United's Chicago hotel, a day before taking on the Chicago Fire in an international friendly at Soldier Field (4 p.m., Saturday, ESPN2). “We just play the game and get back to our hotel and fly to another place. But the ManU players, when we go anywhere, a lot of fans support us.”

Sure enough, fans lined up outside the hotel door waiting to get a glimpse of their favorite athletes on their way to a training session at Toyota Park in Bridgeview. Before training, however, Park and teammate Patrice Evra had another stop to make, part of the promotional side of their preseason tour and one that might not help them improve their fitness.

They were headed to Gino's East to learn how to make Chicago-style deep-dish pizza.

“Chicago is famous for pizza, so now I'm going to make it,” Park said with a laugh and a shrug, admitting he knew nothing about making pizza. “I'm just going to follow what they tell me.”

These kinds of appearances are a standard part of the tour for Manchester United, which also has visited New England and Seattle and plays the MLS all-stars on Wednesday outside New York. It's just a way to make new fans for Manchester United.

“We're always doing something else for the commercial side, but to make pizza is quite impressive,” Park said.

A six-year veteran with Manchester United, the 30-year-old South Korean midfielder has come to understand what makes the club special.

“We have some new players, but still we have the same quality, the same mentality,” he said. “It doesn't change because in our history we lose some great players and still we deal with that. But it's not a one-man team. It's 11 players coming together.”

Park is working on a new contract that will keep him in Manchester a little longer.

“I've got an offer, but I haven't signed yet,” Park said. “But we are in negotiations.”