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Sports

Thursday February 28, 2008

Thai Manchester City players hit Swiss visa hitch

BANGKOK: The drawn-out attempt of three Thai players to establish themselves with Manchester City has hit another bureaucratic hitch, with the trio issued tourist visas rather than working documents for a scheduled loan spell in Switzerland.

Unable to get starts in the Premier League, the trio – Suree Sukha, Kiatprawut Saiwaew (pic) and Teerasil Dangda – have been loaned out from City to feeder Swiss club Grasshopper Zurich.

However they were issued with tourist visas for Switzerland, and now must wait for working visas before being eligible to play.

“We may have to wait for another two or three weeks and see what happens,” Kiatprawut was quoted saying yesterday in the Bangkok Post newspaper.

“But I won’t give up. To play in a European League is my dream.

“I cannot do anything. I have to wait for City people to solve the problem.”

The visa mix-up was the latest in a series of woes for the Thai trio, who joined City after the English Premier League club were taken over by former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

Initially they were denied work permits to play in England, then complained of not being paid, and now have struck problems at the Swiss Super League club. – AP

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