Split Premier League in half and fewer foreigners: Hong Kong football boss’ wish list to raise standards in city
- Jorn Andersen in favour of mid-season split in top flight and limiting number of foreign players
- Head coach wants minimum number of under-22s in starting line-ups, and cup competitions scrapped
Football needs a major overhaul if the standard of the game in the city is to ever improve, Hong Kong boss Jorn Andersen has said, and splitting the Premier League in two is just part of his extensive wish list.
The Norwegian would also like to limit the number of foreign players clubs could bring in, and believes at least one of the city’s three cup competitions should be axed.
It did not take Andersen long to spot the significant weaknesses in the local game after his appointment as head coach in December 2021, and he said decisions needed to made to attract more fans and improve the ability of players coming into the Hong Kong team.
Having seen far too many one-sided games over the past two years, Andersen would split the top-flight midway through the season, so the to six and bottom five teams contest their own mini leagues in the second half of the campaign.
The 61-year-old would scrap at least one of the three existing cup competitions - the FA Cup, Senior Shield and Sapling Cup - and play all knockout matches in midweek.
He also believes there should be fewer foreign players allowed in squads, and backs the introduction of a rule dictating sides field two local under-22 players in their starting 11s.
He also “likes the idea” of leading clubs, such as Kitchee and Lee Man, switching to play in the Chinese Super League, but ruled out fielding a Hong Kong team in the mainland competition.
Addressing potential changes for the local league, Andersen said: “There are many things in Hong Kong football we need to improve, and the organisation has to be better.
“The gap between the teams at the top and bottom is too big. I liked the system [league split] when I coached in South Korea [with Incheon United]. It means the stronger sides do not have to play so many games against weaker opponents. It is better for Kitchee to play Lee Man four times, instead of twice. The competition will be much higher.”
Hong Kong’s top-flight clubs currently compete for the FA Cup, Senior Shield, and Sapling Cup, in addition to league commitments.
“There are too many cups, they are not important and they disturb the interest in the league,” Andersen said. “One or two cups is enough.
“The weekend should be only for Premier League matches, then cup ties can happen in the week. Otherwise, we do not know which game is playing, and it is too much for the fans. You can see the interest going down. If we raise the quality in the league, I think supporters will come back to the stadiums.”
Andersen is a proponent of laws demanding teams select two under-22 players after seeing how a version of the rule served the South Korea national team.
“In Hong Kong, it would mean 22 young players having game time every week, and this is how they improve,” Andersen said.
He admitted to being taken aback by his team’s character, commitment and work rate at the recent Asian Cup, but said: “I had three or four young players with potential, but they do not get much playing time in Hong Kong.
“They only improve when they come to me, and I give them hard training. I always tell these players they have to do more outside training … but I do not think they do it.”
Clubs are currently permitted six foreigners in their starting line-ups, and Andersen said that to develop the game in the city that was “too many”.
“The big teams need to raise their quality, to compete in the [Asian] Champions League, and they think only about results,” he said. “If they play with 10 players older than 30, and lots of foreigners, that is their right. But that is the problem.
“I cannot change these things. The FA and the clubs have to change.”
While he said the Football Association did not have the finances to centrally contract players and enter a team in the Chinese Super League, he thought a club should because it was “the best way to improve”.
