Uzbekistan boss slams ‘dangerous’ Mong Kok Stadium, questions integrity of Hong Kong World Cup group
- Head coach Srecko Katanec launches furious attack on city pitch despite watching his side cruise to a 2-0 win
- Goalscorer Eldor Shomurodov also raises concerns over playing surface at compact ground, which seats just 6,000
Uzbekistan head coach Srecko Katanec and star striker Eldor Shomurodov have launched a furious attack on Hong Kong’s choice of venue for their World Cup qualifier and said it threatened the integrity of the competition.
The visitors cruised to a 2-0 win over the city’s side, but that did little to quell the anger over the match being switched from Hong Kong Stadium to the far smaller Mong Kok Stadium.
Katanec and Shomurodov, who claimed Mong Kok’s small playing surface was dangerous for players, were already angry at having to play on an artificial pitch in their previous World Cup away fixture, a 3-1 victory in Turkmenistan in November.
Hong Kong staged their opening group fixture against Turkmenistan at the main stadium, and will return to the 40,000-seat venue for their final home World Cup qualifier against Iran in June.
Shomurodov, who scored Uzbekistan’s opening goal and was the game’s stand-out player, asked to address the media following the away team’s post-match press conference.