South China's young defender Ma Ka-ki said he was estactic when he managed to take a picture with Real Madrid greats Zinedine Zidane and Luis Figo during his eye-opening three-week training stint with the third team of the Spanish champions.
'It's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for me to grab them for a picture although my favourite player Roberto Carlos wasn't there then. Our team also trained at the same training ground with the top stars including Zidane, Figo, [Steve] McManaman and [Fernando] Hierro,' Ma recalled on his return to Hong Kong yesterday.
Ma and teammate Cheong Yu-wai, both under-21, were sent for the world-class training thanks to the partnership between the Caroliners and kit-suppliers adidas.
'But they had no time to talk with us because they were in a hurry for training,' said Ma, who started six to seven matches with South China last season.
On the footballing front, Ma was stuck by the professionalism of the players and coaches of his team. Compared to the relatively easy life of Hong Kong footballers, who normally train only once a day and tend to enjoy late-night activities, Ma's Spanish friends are extremely committed.
'The organisation of a team, the training methods and the players are very professional. The players would all keep quiet when the coach spoke to them and only made comments afterwards. They also never complained that the workload was too much like some Hong Kong players do. They just did what the coach asked them to do.'
