- Antonio Razzi claims to speak with Kim Jong-un, and says he is a Man United fan
- He says dictator is happy Han Kwang-song is playing in Italian second league
- Kim believes that North Korean players will join Premier League sides soon
- Premier League matches and World Cup are regularly broadcast on Korean TV
Kim Jong-un is a Manchester United fan and hopes North Korean players will soon be making waves in the Premier League, an Italian Senator has said.
Antonio Razzi claims to regularly speak with the North Korean dictator, including about the beautiful game.
Kim is particularly pleased to have a North Korean, Han Kwang-song, playing in the Italian second tier for Perugia – and believes his players will grace football’s most competitive league some time soon.
Kim Jong-un is a huge Manchester United fan and regularly screens Premier League games on Korean National Television after falling in love with the game while studying in Switzerland
Mr Razzi revealed the detail in an interview with The Sun.
He said Kim never misses a major football tournament, having become obsessed with the game while studying in San Siro, Switzerland, as a young man.
However, he said Kim does not compare himself to any United heroes of yesteryear because ‘Kim is Kim – he is the only one.’
It was first reported two years ago that Kim had a fondness for the Red Devils, who were at the time struggling under the stewardship of Louis Van Gaal.
Italian senator Antonio Razzi, who claims to regularly speak with Kim, said the dictator believes North Korean players will make it to the Premier League soon (pictured right, Lakaku scores for Manchester United at the weekend)
Monitoring groups confirmed to Mail Online that Premier League football is regularly shown on KCNA – the country’s state-run television channel.
Other major tournaments such as the Euros and World Cup are also thought to be shown, but footage often appears several days after the game has been played.
The footage is also heavily edited to remove many of the crowd shots, and all of the advertising because the regime does not want to promote western life or products.
It is not known where North Korea acquires the footage as it has no broadcast deal with the Premier League.