AFC Champions League 2: Hong Kong clubs can’t top Asia’s best, says coach after new loss
Eastern exit AFC Champions League Two following 4-1 defeat at home to Sydney, having lost away fixture 5-0
Roberto Losada said Hong Kong clubs were no match for Asia’s best, after his Eastern side were beaten 4-1 by a vastly superior Sydney FC on Thursday.
The result officially ended Eastern’s hopes of reaching the AFC Champions League Two last-16, while Sydney advanced from an Asian group stage for only the second time.
Head coach Losada acknowledged his plan to contain Sydney “didn’t work”, and pointed to the huge pay disparity between the two sets of players.
The Australians led 3-0 following a one-sided first half at Mong Kok Stadium. Substitute Noah Baffoe, who skied a late penalty, scored for Eastern shortly after half-time, but the outstanding Anas Ouahim completed his hat-trick from the spot to restore Sydney’s three-goal advantage.
While Ouahim, 27, spoke about his pride following a first career treble, Losada was left to reflect on an eight-goal divide between Eastern and Sydney, after the reverse fixture finished 5-0.
“There is a big gap between the teams,” he said. “Some people ask me if we can play at this level; we can’t, we can try to be competitive at this level, but we can’t play at it.
