The Athletic FC Podcast Network.

Hello and welcome to Talk the Devil's Extra, the bonus podcast taking you deeper on the biggest Manchester United stories from the Athletic.

In this edition, we're delighted to be following up our episode on the greatest European nights at Old Trafford with a show all about the best away days on the continent for Manchester United.

As always, there's been a great response, so thank you for that.

So much, in fact, that we're going to do finals another day, maybe later this season, you never know.

But thank you for sharing all your wonderful memories of the greatest games the most memorable moments and of course some quirky travel tales as well it

wouldn't be a talk of the devils without a few of those and it wouldn't be a talk of the devils

without lorry and andy joining us as well gentlemen welcome we're hoping that we're getting

everyone in the mood for Thursday with this,

but we're going to start at the very start, if that's okay. Andy Mitton, obviously,

Laurie is our more senior member. Resident historian. Resident historian to give him his full title.

So Andy, Manchester United's first ever away game in Europe was?

And elect.

1956, United won 2-0 and then won 10-0, which we discussed on a previous podcast in the home leg.

And then there was a game in Dortmund and then there was a game in Bilbao.

Yeah, weirdly.

Any idea what travel was actually like for the players back then?

I mean, were there even fans attending Manchester United's first away game in Europe,

for example?

There would be a handful who travelled with the team.

I spoke to the defender Bill Fowx about that trip to Bilbao in 1957, and in his words, he said he said the following now bear in mind this is the year before the Munich air disaster

Falk said I loved flying up to Munich nothing bothered me and the plane could have flown upside down for all I cared we flew to Bilbao in January 57 in an old Dakota and the temperature on board was freezing.

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