‘A great night for Hong Kong football’: how South Korea boot camp set up Lee Man’s 5-1 thrashing of Bali United in Asian Champions League
- Man of the match Mitchel Paulissen impresses with double on his debut – but coach says he’s still only playing at ‘70 per cent’
- Premier League side face a daunting clash against defending champions Urawa Red Diamonds in final round of qualifying
Vice captain Ngan Lok-fung has put Lee Man’s 5-1 thrashing of Bali United down to their rigorous preseason boot camp in South Korea as they kicked off their season in stunning fashion.
The Hong Kong Premier League team swept aside their Indonesian visitors in their AFC Asian Champions League qualifier on Wednesday night. A double from Dutch debutant Mitchel Paulissen, and strikes from Gil Martins, Everton Camargo, and Jose Angel, set up an emphatic victory at Hong Kong Stadium.
Lee Man now face a daunting play-off against the defending champions, Urawa Red Diamonds of Japan, in the final round of qualifying on Tuesday in Saitama.
But they will go into the clash full of confidence after an impressive display that was built on the back of a “precious” stint training overseas this summer, with life back to normal following the disruption caused by the pandemic to the last three seasons.
“We did not have any pre-season over the last couple of seasons, and the players had lacked the opportunity of getting to know each other under one roof before the season started,” midfielder Ngan said.
“It not only provided us with the chance to prepare for the new season technically and tactically, but also some time for all the players to build trust among each other, as we stayed together for the whole period. This is very important as it helps bring the entire team together as a unit.”
Lee Man celebrate biggest night with crushing win over Bali United
The 30-year-old Hong Kong international, who joined Lee Man six years ago, said the team were eager to prove themselves after a disappointing campaign where they came close to winning trophies but ultimately missed out.
“We did not do very well last season, not that impressive, and therefore we needed a strong start to this season,” Ngan said.
“At the same time, we are also representing Hong Kong in this regional top-tier cup competition, and we have a mission to safeguard the pride of Hong Kong football.
“The result came as a bit of a surprise, as we have watched a lot of footage on Bali and knew the opponents were very strong. But our performance was very consistent.
“Going into an early lead and then seeing them equalise, we never lost our confidence that we could regain and extend the lead, and kill off any chance they had of getting back into it.”
Lee Man were also indebted to the performance of attacking midfielder Paulissen, who could not have had a better start to life in Hong Kong, being named man of the match in So Kon Po.
“This is a great feeling that you could start like this,” Paulissen, 30, said. “We prepared very well. It was a good atmosphere with a lot of fans and I think we gave them a good game.
“For us nothing could be better than a 5-1 win and it was a great night for Hong Kong football. We showed we can compare with good teams as Bali is a really good team and they are champions of Indonesia which is quite a big league. It’s just the beginning. I want to play and win titles with Lee Man.”
Another newcomer, Henri Anier, also impressed on debut. The Estonia international came close to opening his account only to see a header from Martins’ cross in the first minute strike the crossbar.
Head coach Tsang Chiu-tat was more than happy with the performances of his two new charges.
“They have been working hard to settle into the team as we have seen in the training camp in South Korea, and their arrival has given us more options in attack.
“But they are still yet to reach their best level, especially when playing in the heat and humidity of Hong Kong. I would say they have reached 70 per cent. They will definitely get better once they have adapted to the conditions here.”
