Hysterical Chinese supporters invaded a Manchester United training session in Guangzhou today, bringing a halt to proceedings while United players waited for crowds to disperse.

In scenes usually reserved for Hollywood stars, United players such as Ryan Giggs and Wayne Rooney were met by wild screams as they ventured onto the training surface. Unable to control their excitement, the fans began streaming towards the players, some taking photographs as they did so, and the squad had to be ushered back to the changing rooms.

They returned when the crowds had been calmed. Vicky Ho, a spokeswoman for United's Asian tour, confirmed that nobody was hurt and claimed the incident was simply the result of a few supporters getting carried away with the excitement. "The United players were overwhelmed by the passion of the Guangzhou fans," she said.

The training session came ahead of United's friendly on Friday against Guangzhou Pharmaceutical, the last stop on the club's Asian tour, in which they have defeated FC Seoul and Shenzhen Xiangxue Eisiti in their previous two matches. The Premiership champions face Chelsea in the FA Community Shield on August 5 at Wembley Stadium.