Hong Kong boss Andersen eyeing Cambodia, Brunei as sacrificial lambs to help break side’s scoring curse

Head coach Andersen remains upbeat Hong Kong can end year-long goal drought from 2-0 win over Myanmar last September
He will also have month-long preparation for AFC Asian Cup finals in Qatar with three high quality training matches in Middle East

The Football Association of Hong Kong, China

Chan Kin-wa

Published: 7:30am, 14 Aug 2023

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Hong Kong will play internationals against one of the only sides they have managed to score against in the past year, and a team ranked almost 50 places below them, as Jorn Andersen looks for two confidence-boosting wins next month.

With Asia zone qualifying for the next World Cup on the horizon, Hong Kong are expected to play Cambodia in Phnom Penh on September 7 and then host Brunei four days later during Fifa’s international window.

After qualifying for the AFC Asian Cup at a tournament in India last year, Andersen’s side have struggled in front of goal, failing to score since they beat Myanmar 2-0 in game behind closed doors almost 12 months ago.

A 1-1 draw with Singapore in March at Hong Kong Stadium came courtesy of a Lionel Tan Han Wei own goal, and that is the last time the team got on the score sheet in any fashion.

Cambodia though were beaten 3-0 at the qualifiers in June last year, and Andersen is hoping a similar performance will kick-start his side’s attack.

Head coach Jorn Andersen believes his side are close to breaking their goal drought. Photo: Handout

“It is important to score goals before the World Cup qualifiers which will begin in October,” Andersen said. “We beat Cambodia in the Asian Cup qualifiers last year and are confident of repeating it to boost the team confidence.”

Given next month is designated by Fifa for matches, Andersen hopes to have his best players available, including the likes of defenders Leung Nok-hang, Vas Nunez and Yue Tze-nam, and forward Matthew Orr, all of who play for clubs in mainland China.

Another defender, Li Ngai-hoi, left Chinese Super League side Nantong Zhiyun after the opening league game of the season and has joined Hong Kong Premier League outfit BC Rangers.

The troubles though have not been in defence but rather upfront, and the only player who has come close to looking like solving that issue, Michael Udebuluzor, is still without a Hong Kong passport despite being born in the city.

Occasionally efficient, the city’s immigration department has now taken more than eight months to process the teenage striker’s application and his continued absence is known to be a source of deep frustration within the Hong Kong Football Association.

Hong Kong are hoping Michael Udebuluzor could their answer upfront, if he can get a passport. Photo: Jonathan Wong

In contrast, American Kyle Anderson, whose maternal great grandfather was reportedly Chinese, got a passport in a matter of weeks so he could play for the country at this month’s Fiba World Cup.

Hong Kong’s World Cup qualifying campaign begins with a two-legged clash against Bhutan in October, and the winner of that will take the final place in Group E, with games against Iran, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan to follow.

Overshadowing all of this is the team’s first appearance in the AFC Asian Cup since 1968, where they will take on Iran, the United Arab Emirates and Palestine in Group C in January.

Andersen has been given plenty of support by the city’s clubs, with the top-flight suspending league matches in December, allowing him to have his players in a two-week training camp, before they fly to the Middle East for three “high quality training games” ahead of their first game in Qatar against UAE on January 14.

“The three opponents will be finalised very soon, but we are quite happy with the arrangements that have been made for Hong Kong to strive for a better result in Qatar,” Andersen said.

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