As first days go it wasn’t a bad one for Phil Roberts, who signed for Dundee then found out he will be facing Manchester City’s megastars.
The 20-year-old frontman put pen to paper on a two-year deal then discovered he will be involved in the most glamorous of friendlies against the champions-elect of England.
Big-spending City will be at Dens Park on Sunday, July 13 the day of the World Cup final in Rio de Janeiro.
Such is the calibre of player at the Etihad, most of their big names like David Silva, Sergio Aguero and Vincent Kompany will be in Brazil for football’s extravaganza and may or may not make it back to their pre-season training camp, which is understood to be in St Andrews.
Nevertheless, the Blues are box office and there will be plenty of quality on show to test Roberts and his new team-mates.
“It is a great game to hopefully be involved in,” said Roberts, an English-born former Republic of Ireland youth international.
“Straight away after joining the club I have something like that to look forward to it’s great. They are possibly the best team in England we will find out on Sunday (City will lift the title if they beat West Ham at home and even a draw should do them).
“I didn’t know about it before I signed. This is the first I have heard and it all helps make it a good time to be here.
“Whatever team Man City bring here, it will be nice to test yourself against some of the best players in the world. Why not? It is only going to improve you as a player. It is a big game for the fans to look forward to as well.”
The fixture was arranged via chief executive Scot Gardiner, and manager Paul Hartley warmly welcomed the considerable challenge it will pose his players before they step back into the top flight.
“It came about through Scot and the clubs had been in contact for the last four or five months,” said Hartley.
“It is a brilliant game for us and hopefully it will be good preparation for the new season. It will be a tough match against top-quality players and I think it’s one that everyone will be looking forward to.
“There will be neutrals coming to watch as well as our own supporters, just because of who Man City might bring up here. It will depend on how the World Cup goes but it will still be a quality line-up.”