Kin Pan-gon set to give Hong Kong’s youngsters the chance to shine in friendly against Jordan
Coach is likely to stay faithful to naturalised players but will look to give his rising stars more playing time
Hong Kong coach Kim Pan-gon will test a mix of experienced naturalised players and young guns in a friendly match against Jordan in Amman on Thursday.
The clash is specially arranged to help Hong Kong prepare for another Middle East nation, Lebanon, in the opening match of the 2019 Asian Cup qualifiers five days later in Beirut.
Hong Kong have not qualified for the regional championship for decades following their appearances in the early years of the finals back in 1950s and 60s.
But with growing support from the government in recent years, the Hong Kong Football Association has been able to allocate more resources for the team’s preparations after an encouraging run in the 2018 World Cup Asian zone qualifiers.
Hong Kong came close to reaching the third round of World Cup qualification, which features the top 12 teams from Asia, including Japan, South Korea, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.
