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Jonathan White

New KC Southern coach Zesh Rehman and his club have felt the fury of football fans on social media after he featured in a fitness video for Hong Kong police.
In a video published on their Facebook and YouTube pages, an officer named as “Joe from Western District” greets former English Premier League defender Rehman, who introduces himself and his son.
The Southern player-coach and his son then demonstrate how people can keep fit in pairs, showing a number of exercises aimed to keep people healthy as the city battles the coronavirus.
The video appears to have been filmed before Rehman, who first played in Hong Kong with Kitchee from 2012 to 2014 before returning with Southern in 2017, was appointed coach.



【 同心抗疫·齊來做運動 】 全城抗疫期間，大家都要keep住做運動，咁先可以疫境自強。大家一齊跟住西區警區x 冠忠南區足球會嘅中堅Zeshan Rehman同佢囝囝做HIIT 啦。 想睇足本嘅Training Programme，咁就要去香港警察嘅YouTube Channel啦。
Posted by 香港警察 Hong Kong Police on Monday, 18 May 2020


While the response to the Facebook post of the video was mixed, with both pro- and anti-police sentiments expressed in the comments, football fans made clear their dismay on Southern’s own Facebook page.
Southern fans posted on the club’s announcement of Rehman as the new player-coach, bombarding it with messages that ranged from abandoning their support for the club to branding them “blue”, as per the designation of yellow and blue for which side you support in Hong Kong’s anti-government protests.


Someone also edited the club’s Wikipedia page so the nickname read “The Aberdeeners = The Blues”.
Several Facebook users posted images of the police during protests, suggesting that they could be selected for Southern, and photographs of alleged police brutality.
News of Rehman’s appointment as the new head coach had been welcomed over the weekend, with positive comments greeting Southern’s Facebook post.


However, the tone has changed. “Will you switch to play 721?” asked one user, in reference to the attacks on anti-government protesters in Yuen Long on July 21 last year.
Another Facebook account offered new versions of the Southern crest, one with “721” and another with “831”, a reference to conflict between protesters and police at Prince Edward MTR station on August 31 last year.
In screenshots shared on WhatsApp, one Southern fan expressed their desire to burn the club shirt with later images showing it defaced and cut up.


Many of the public Facebook comments referenced the next Hong Kong Premier League meeting between Southern and Yuen Long.
That will not take place until next season as Yuen Long were one of the three teams to pull out of the current season because of the coronavirus pandemic. The season has been on hiatus since March.
A restart date is unclear but September has been mooted as a possibility. Yuen Long, along with Pegasus and BC Rangers, will be allowed to return to the HKPL next season.
Hong Kong football supporters’ clubs ask serving police officers to leave
This is not the first time that politics and the protests have spilled over into football in Hong Kong this season.
Fans at the game between Kitchee and Yuen Long last September marked the 21st minute of the match with Yuen Long to remember the July 21 incident.
Earlier in the month, 14,000 fans filled Hong Kong Stadium for the Fifa World Cup Qualifier against Iran, many jeering the Chinese national anthem. They also sang the un official protest song, Glory to Hong Kong and formed a human chain inside the venue at half-time.




















View this post on Instagram



















I value the trust & confidence placed in me by the President, Vice President and Chairman. I am looking forwardto maintaining our honest relationship and to the challenges ahead. The coronavirus pandemic has changed the dynamics of the game worldwide, it has restricted many clubs financially, however opportunities will arise through adversity. This is very much an opportunity for me to lead a wonderful club. ⚽️ #wethesouth #kcsouthern
A post shared by Zesh Rehman (@zesh_rehman) on May 16, 2020 at 12:12am PDT



The combination of civil unrest and the coronavirus pandemic has wrought havoc on Hong Kong’s sporting calendar over the past year.

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Online fury after former Fulham defender appears in fitness video for Hong Kong police alongside his son
Fans take to Facebook to post anti-police sentiments on club’s announcement of Rehman as new coach



Online fury after former Fulham defender appears in fitness video for Hong Kong police alongside his son, as fans take to Facebook to post anti-police sentiments on club’s announcement of Rehman as new coach.


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