AFC Asian Cup Qatar 2023: Hong Kong Coach Says UAE Match Will Be Difficult

Doha, January 13 (QNA) - The head coach of the Hong Kong national football team Jorn Andersen said that the team's hopes in the tournament are not high, adding that they came to Qatar to learn and gain experience through playing against big teams. The UAE squad is good and has remarkable players which makes the ach against them difficult, he pointed.

                In the Pre Match press conference, Andersen said that participating in a championship as big as the AFC Asian cup will benefit the players and give them more experience, which will benefit football in Hong Kong in general. He pointed out that the State of Qatar possesses enormous capabilities in terms of facilities, sports infrastructure, and football stadiums, which will help his team to go through a new experience at all levels and benefit from it in developing their levels.

                Facing the UAE national team will be difficult, because it is one of the strong teams and includes distinguished players, he said pointing out that he watched their recent friendly matches and formed a positive impression of them.

                Regarding the possibility of reaching the second round of the tournament, Andersen stressed the need to think realistically, especially since the Hong Kong team is not a highly ranked team, and the gap between it and the rest of the participating teams is large.

                He believed that the development of football in Hong Kong during the coming period requires a good quality of players capable of raising the team's performance to higher levels, considering that the current team is the best in the history of football in Hong Kong.

                For his part, Captain of Hong Kong national team Yapp Hung Fai expressed happiness at his first participation in the Asian Cup finals, stressing that he will do his best to lead his country's team to achieve positive results.

                Fai said, in the press conference, that the UAE national team is strong and includes a distinguished group of high-level players, but nevertheless the Hong Kong national team will strive to provide a strong performance and adhere to the coach's instructions. (QNA)