“I am always committed to developing Hong Kong soccer, but if the Hong Kong Football Association wants to get a replacement for my job, they need to find him early. I also need to plan for my own future.

“But this is not my biggest concern at the moment and I will not request the HKFA for discussion because my focus is on the two World Cup matches.”

Hong Kong play both sides at Mong Kok Stadium in the next two weeks before resuming the campaign against China and Qatar in September.

Two home wins against the minnows will be pivotal to Hong Kong’s chances of reaching the next round, prompting the HKFA to secure funding for the training camp; neither Kim nor captain Chan Wai-ho could remember the last time the team had such preparation.

“It must be a long time ago,” said Kim, who started his playing career in Hong Kong 15 years ago. “It just proves they are treating the qualifiers very seriously.”

Chan, who first represented Hong Kong in the 2002 World Cup qualifiers said, “This is good preparation and although most of us are mentally exhausted after a long season, it will be good to spend time with the fellow players together so that we can be more focused when the qualifiers get underway next week.”

Hong Kong will play two training games in Kuala Lumpur, including a friendly against the hosts on Saturday. The association has also hired a specialist fitness coach from Japan, Seigo Ikeda, for the duration of the qualifiers.

Hong Kong will be without top scorer Chan Siu-ki for the two qualifiers after the South China striker injured knee ligaments in May, and Kim will try some new combinations up front in Malaysia.