HK U22 squad list. They were supposed to depart for Mongolia today, but unfortunately their flight was cancelled due to poor weather in Mongolia. So they will train in Hong Kong a little while longer.
FT: Hong Kong U23 Vs Singapore U23 - 1:1 Hong Kong kickstarted their AFC U23 qualifying campaign with a draw against Singapore. Meizhou Hakka's TSUI Wang-Kit scored within the 52nd minute to give Hong Kong the lead, that is until they conceded a minute later courtesy of Singapore's Lionel TAN. Both teams had to settle with a point each and Hong Kong will need to perform better against the hosts Mongolia and North Korea, if they were to have any chance of qualifying for next year's tournament.
I guess that result more or less settled the fate of the team. They are going to miss qualifying by a small margin as usual.
AFC U23 2020 Qualifiers: Hong Kong Vs Mongolia - 1:0 Hong Kong managed to scrape a narrow win against hosts when Matthew Elliot ORR Wing Kai's cross found YUE Tsz-Nam who tapped the ball past the Mongolian goalkeeper. They still have a chance of qualifying but they will require an uphill task win against North Korea if they were to top the group.
Want to know why Yuen Long agreed to reschedule the match to yesterday when they knew they would be shorthanded? Read this: That they would use the excuse of wanting to give young players more opportunities is pathetic. That they would openly admit to essentially throwing the match yesterday is despicable. That they would insist on not playing on April 22 because they MIGHT qualify for the Sapling Cup Final on the 27th is presumptuous and quite arrogant for a club of their stature. It's fitting that they lost 3-0 yesterday because that's exactly what the score would've been if they had just forfeited and not played. Shame on them for throwing the game and shame on the HKFA for agreeing to reschedule.
Well, not very many wants R&F FC to win the title. So maybe that's why everybody is working together towards the greater good.
Was curious about this so I looked up the North Korea U23 squad and compared it to the Ryomyong squad. It appears that only one Ryomyong player was called up to the U23 squad. I know you're joking but I can picture Ken Ng saying to the media "fake news everyone, no collusion."
The latest from Brian Leung on the new men's team manager: - Expect an announcement in mid-April - It will not be someone Hong Kongers are familiar with - It will not be an Icelander - The candidate has prior national team coaching experience
Asian U22 qualifying tournament North Korea U22 2:0 Hong Kong U22 Hong Kong are out. I never understand why any sensible coach will play 5 in the back. The lads never play 5 in the back for their clubs and you put them in a big match and expect them to play well in that formation? Just because you have more defenders does not mean they can play together. Most likely what happens in the end is the ball ricocheting off each other or people miss their marking. Also the lone attacker at the front has no support and your defense become under pressure constantly. This HK u22 side had no chance.
Although the Barclays Asia Trophy will NOT be held in Hong Kong this year, Man City is expected to come to Hong Kong after the BAT and play Kitchee on 24 July./
The failure of HK U22 means Singapore U22 also misses out, despite beating Mongolia 3-1 and not losing a single match. If HK U22 managed a draw against North Korea U22, then Singapore U22 would have won the group.
Following in the footsteps of Sandro and Tommy Chuck, Paul Ngue has returned to Hong Kong, signing with Pegasus. __________________________ In other news, the last round of HKPL matches will be moved pushed back 24 hours in order to accommodate Kitchee and Tai Po. The final round, which was to to be played on Saturday, 18 May will now be played on Sunday the 19th. Credit where credit is due, although the matches should've been scheduled for the Sunday to begin with.
It now looks like Kitchee players will get no rest this summer. Their last AFC Cup group match is on 26 June vs 4.25 (North Korea) at Mongkok Stadium. They then will face Man City on 24 July at Hong Kong Stadium. If they progress from the AFC Cup they will play their inter-zonal semi-final on 20/21 Aug and 10/11 Sep. They can't possibly get a month long break in the summer as all other clubs do. Tai Po is in a similar situation but they don't have an exhibition match in July so in theory they could postpone their summer holidays a little.
Lots of news coming out on Friday afternoon: Paul Woodland: New Hong Kong manager to be introduced on 9 April Kitchee sign former LA Galaxy II right back Jonathan Hernandez, replacing Seo Sang Min R&F confirm discussions with Ajax over Mong Kong Stadium friendly in late May, as well as Liverpool-Dortmund Legends match at Hong Kong Stadium on 7 June R&F confirm that they will remain at Yanzigang Stadium next season
Kitchee signed American midfielder Jonathan Hernandez, a LA Galaxy youth product, to replace their Korean player Seo Sang-min.
South China Morning Post reports former Finland coach, Mixu Paatelainen is widely tipped to take the coach position of the Hong Kong National Football Team. https://www.scmp.com/sport/football...h-mixu-paatelainen-tipped-take-over-hong-kong "It is believed 52-year-old Paatelainen, who was last with the Latvia national team in 2018, is top of the list. The second choice is a former national coach of the Philippines." I highly suspect that to be Thomas Dooley, who did coached the Philippines national football and lead to them to qualify for their first Asian Cup tournament before he decided to leave his post. Anyways looking at the statistics of Mixu Paatelainen's mixed managerial record with the Finland and Latvia National Football Teams, I'm not entirely convinced whether he would be the right candidate to take Hong Kong forward.
HKFA Cup quarter-finals Wofoo Tai Po 1:2 Dream FC (after extra time). Kitchee 6:0 Lee Man Kitchee will play Dream FC on 11 May for a place in the final. Kitchee have won 4 matches in a row and coach Chu Chi-Kwong claims the re-opening of Shek Mun training centre is a significant help to the club. Kitchee will play a tired Wofoo Tai Po on 3 April in their opening AFC Cup I Group match. I think Wofoo Tai Po will have little chance with a tired squad against a team that is on good form.
Well, how much are HKFA paying? HK$2 million/year? That wouldn't even get coaches like Mourinho or Van Gaal to raise their little fingers. I don't even want to think about what kind of coach we can get if govt stop funding the HKFA. Lee Kin-Wo again? That would be the quickest way to kill off any remaining interest in local football. If Thomas Dooley was doing well and his stocks are on the rise, then why would be want to coach Hong Kong? He could easily be receiving better offers elsewhere, especially his American background means there must be plenty of opportunities in the MLS.
HKFA Cup HK Pegasus 1:1 (3:4 penalties) Best Union Yuen Long R&F FC 0:1 KC Southern District Best Union Yuen Long and KC Southern District will fight for a place in the FA Cup final. And so R&F FC are left with just the league title to fight for, similar to the other big club Eastern Longlions. Huge investments for both clubs yet nothing much to show for it.
2019 AFC Cup Kitchee vs Wofoo Tai Po First ever Hong Kong derby in Asian competitions I think. Kitchee is on 4 straight wins and clearly on form. Their return to Shek Mun training ground is clearly very helpful. Though Aussie defender Matt Smith will be missing due to suspension. Wofoo Tai Po just played 120 minutes on Saturday and they don't look sharp enough in attack in their "Asian" formation. I cannot see them winning this one.
R&F - Will they be disappointed not to win a cup? Possibly. I think that for them, their focus is on the big picture which is setting the table for next season when they become a full HKFA member which will enable them to qualify for AFC competitions. Even if they don't win the league, they've laid down a marker. Eastern - Their season went off the rails after October and they'll be disappointed for sure. Another lost year it seems. However, I think the most disappointing team this year might be Lee Man. Like R&F and Eastern, they increased their investment. They even went as far as saying that they aimed to finish in the top three yet, they're in the bottom two.