Hong Kong ‘not 100 per cent’ ahead of Asian Cup qualifiers admits Jorn Andersen, with squad hit by Covid-19
- Team will face Middle East nation in Kolkata on Wednesday, but two players and three officials tested positive on Monday
- Hong Kong under stern test in group D, with Andersen’s side also facing India and Cambodia, but he says ‘we are working hard’
Hong Kong coach Jorn Andersen’s preparations for his team’s 2023 Asian Cup qualifiers in India suffered a setback on Tuesday when five members of the squad tested positive for Covid-19.
The team face Afghanistan in their first Group D match on Wednesday evening (7.30pm HKT), and Andersen knows they will have to be at their best to get off to a winning start.
Andersen though admitted the rest of his 25-man squad were not “100 per cent” having spent much of the early part of the year in Hong Kong unable to play or train because of the city’s strict Covid-19 policies.
“We are not in 100 per cent good condition, we know that,” Andersen said. “But the players have been trying to do the best over the past five weeks, trying to find a playing style that we want to play. We are working hard and are working in the same direction.”
While the Hong Kong Football Association said the coach was clear of the virus, it did not name the two players and three officials who will now have to spend seven days in quarantine.
With games against Cambodia and the host nation, on Saturday and next Tuesday respectively, Andersen could be down to 23 players for the tournament.
