Hong Kong football head coach Jorn Andersen hails ‘very important’ Thailand trip as he mulls Asian Cup qualifiers squad
- Norwegian is scouting Kitchee and Lee Man as Hong Kong players taste their first competitive action since he took charge last December
- Andersen praises Kitchee for AFC Champions League win – ‘it’s not easy to go 90 minutes after a Covid-19 lockdown for more than three months’
The Norwegian is casting a watchful eye in Buriram as he mulls his selection for Hong Kong’s Asian Cup qualifiers in Kolkata, India in June.
Hong Kong face Afghanistan, Cambodia and India in the span of a week to compete for a spot at the 2023 AFC Asian Cup, to be held in China next summer. The first two qualifying rounds are also 2022 Fifa World Cup Asian team qualifiers.
“I was happy to see their good organisation, good condition – it’s not easy to go 90 minutes after a Covid-19 lockdown for more than three months. This is good for the Hong Kong representative team.
“The Thai team they played were not too strong, but they are in the middle of their season and training all the time. I was surprised and glad to see that Kitchee kept up the tempo for 90 minutes.
“It’s very important that they started the Champions League with a win – now they get confidence for the next few weeks.”
Andersen said some of the tactics deployed by Kitchee manager Alex Chu Chi-kwong were similar to his high-pressing philosophy. Chu opted for a 4-1-4-1 formation, in a change from recent domestic league outings.
“I was happy he changed the system. Very compact, more offensive with high defending. That is in some ways what I want to play in Hong Kong,” Andersen said, adding that he and Chu have a “close relationship”.
“Seeing all their training and friendly matches was very important as the new Hong Kong coach, because I arrived in December and since then they’ve never played football in Hong Kong,” Andersen said.
“When I got out of quarantine they stopped games and training, so as a national coach it was incredible because I had to choose players for June.
“It’s been very difficult, so I’m happy to follow Kitchee and Lee Man. This trip is very important for following players and their condition.”
Those not involved overseas joined up with the first official senior and under-23s representative team training session of Andersen’s tenure last Thursday.
Assistant coach Cheung Kin-fung, who also manages the Hong Kong Premier League’s HK U23 team, was cautious with player workload after more than three months without competition.
“The main goal of the training was for players to regain physical fitness while avoiding high-intensity tactical training which may cause injuries,” Cheung said.
“The Hong Kong team possesses the ability to advance from the group. Although external factors may not be great, I believe we will bring positive energy to the local football community if we have sufficient match preparation.”
Local clubs such as Eastern, Rangers and Southern have also resumed light training, while China-based players are set to return this month.
Andersen will work with his group of 25 after returning to Hong Kong on May 2 and then quarantining. It will be full steam ahead for the qualifiers in India thereafter, including a training camp in Thailand and a pre-competition friendly game lined up with Malaysia in mid-to-late May.
“Seven or eight of the players from my list are starting to train. It will help their condition for when I start with them,” Andersen said.
“I also want to see more of players who are starting to train in Hong Kong, players from Southern, Rangers and the HK under-23s.
“I have six players [playing in China], but I still don’t know how many we will select. I will see their condition next week, and although they have not started the league in China, they are training every day.”
