Hong Kong Tours South East Asia for All-Important Friendly Matches

Hong Kong Men’s Representative Team will embark on a South East Asia tour for two crucial friendly matches in early September. The tour will see Hong Kong’s finest coming up against Vietnam and Singapore away, providing Hong Kong with some solid preparation for the East Asian Cup Qualifiers later this year.

Hong Kong Head Coach Kim Pan-gon spoke about the reasoning behind the South East Asia tour. “We have only played one game this year and our ranking has suffered as a result,” Kim explained. “Lots of the other countries have played in several matches through their regional tournaments and we need to start playing some matches to prepare for the East Asian Cup Qualifiers, as well as boosting our position in the FIFA ranking.”

Kim, a firm supporters’ favorite, went on to analyze Hong Kong’s opponents in the two friendly matches. “Vietnam is a strong side and works very fast on the pitch. We lost against them when we were there last time so we will try to seek for revenge on this occasion,” Kim revealed. “On the other hand, we will head out to Singapore and aim for a victory. One win and one draw will be the target for us on this tour.”

The South Korea-born leader was also asked about his current troops and he offered the following insights. “I am happy to see some of the more experienced players still showing great hunger to play for Hong Kong,” Kim said. “Players like Lee Wai-lim is a great example for the young players as he is physically strong and very disciplined. I also spoke with (Lee) Chi-ho and he told me he is still hungry to play for Hong Kong.”

The Hong Kong team that will head to Vietnam and Singapore are stacked with experienced veterans. The Hong Kong Head Coach had this to say about his player-selections. “Age is just a number for me and our young players need to push themselves to be competitive,” Kim stated. “We have already given our young players many chances before and they simply need to push themselves to reach a higher level. There are a several tournaments coming around and it will be a good chance for the young players to show us whether we should continue to go with the veterans, or have a change in direction.”