Hong Kong football side Kitchee has said its players will fly to Bangkok in two weeks to prepare for their Asian Champions League group matches in April, after the government cancelled all sport because of a surge in Covid-19 cases. All sport has been suspended since January in Hong Kong, and officials recently extended strict social-distancing regulations until April 20. The domestic football season is expected to be abandoned all together. Kitchee play their first match in group J against Chiangrai United of Thailand on April 16, and Chu Chi-kwong, their director of football, said the team had already lost valuable time in preparing for the regions top club competition. “Hong Kong football has been severely hit by the pandemic since 2020 but this latest round of attack makes us suffer much more,” Chu said. “The season has been suspended since early January and for almost two months we have no formal training in the mid of the season which is beyond anyone’s thought for a professional football club. “This has not only interrupted our domestic campaign but more importantly our preparation for the Champions League which will start in April. We have been planning this [overseas training] for a while, and wanted to see if there was any improvement of the situation in Hong Kong, but now we have to go with more than a month before the tournament starts.” Hong Kong club Kitchee drawn against Shanghai Port in Champions League Also in Kitchee’s group are Shanghai Port of China, and either Australian side Melbourne Victory or Vissel Kobe of Japan, who meet in a play-off for the final group spot on March 15. Formerly head coach of the club, Chu said he knew Bangkok well as he had led the club to preseason training there for a number of times. “We do not know where the hosting city of the group will be, as it has yet to be announced by the Asian Football Confederation, but it will be in Thailand and Bangkok is the most convenient city in the country,” Chu said. “Also there is no quarantine requirement which makes our travel easier.” Kitchee also represented Hong Kong in the 2021 Champions League, but just missed out on the knockout stages after finishing behind Pohang Steelers of South Korea on goal difference as one of the three best second-placed teams across five groups. Kitchee’s AFC Champions League journey ends as Daegu win “We were almost hitting our top form when we travelled to the group stage last year as it was held in the mid of the Hong Kong season when we played regularly,” Chu said. “Now we need to pick up our form as soon as possible after stopping for two months in domestic competitions. It will not be easy and we therefore have also scheduled a number of training matches in Bangkok to help players achieve their match fitness. “It’s too early to talk about the chance this year. We have to see our form after training in Bangkok including any injury problems. Nonetheless there is no easy match in the Champions League as we will face teams from top tier leagues across the region.” Kitchee have had one player infected by Covid-19 during a test arranged by the Hong Kong Football Association two weeks ago, but Chu said the player had already recovered and was waiting for a final test before being allowed out of quarantine. “I have already told the players to keep a good personal hygiene condition and avoid going to crowded areas because if he gets infected which is not uncommon these days he will not be able to travel to Bangkok for training next month. We must take every precautions to prevent this,” he said.