New manager Jorn Andersen calls for ‘more confidence and power’ ahead of next month’s Asian Cup qualifiers
- The head coach of Hong Kong’s national team meets his charges in training for first time since taking over last December
- Andersen, who was in charge of North Korea and K-League side Incheon before his Hong Kong appointment, says he is happy with the five weeks his team has to prepare before facing Afghanistan in June
New manager Jorn Andersen believed he has a squad that can win matches as Hong Kong kick-starts preparation for next month’s 2023 Asian Cup qualifiers in India.
“We have good players and a good team that can beat others,” said the former Norway international, who was the first foreign player to become top goalscorer with 18 goals in the Bundesliga when he played for Eintracht Frankfurt in 1990.
“The only thing I want to ask the players is to take more confidence. In the past, Hong Kong team spent 80 per cent in defence in a match and this is not my style. I want the players to play more upfront, trying to play with more confidence and with more power. They must try to win the game and not try to avoid losing the game.”
Since his appointment late last year, Anderson’s working schedule has been interrupted by the latest round of Covid-19 in Hong Kong, allowing him only to meet his players for the first time in training after more than five months.
Jorn Andersen names first Hong Kong squad ahead of Asian Cup qualifiers
All sports facilities were shut down by the government in early January because of Covid-19 and reopened in mid April.
But Andersen, who was in charge of North Korea and K-League side Incheon before his Hong Kong appointment, is happy with the five weeks his team has to prepare before facing Afghanistan on June 8 and Cambodia three days later before a final showdown against hosts India on June 14.
“For most of the national team matches, you will have probably one week to prepare for a tournament but now I have more than five weeks,” Andersen said.
“Of course we need time to build up the players and motivate them again after such a long break. But I am sure they can grow everyday through increasing the training intensity and bring them to Thailand for a training camp with friendly matches before the qualification tournament.”
After two weeks of intensive training at the Tseung Kwan O centre including training matches with domestic sides Eastern and Lee Man, Andersen will then bring a squad of 25 players from the current 33-member training squad to Thailand on May 17 where they will play two friendly games against Thai League One side Chonburi and the Thai Under-23 team.
The team will then travel to Malaysia to play against the home side for an international friendly before leaving for India four to five days before the qualification tournament. Malaysia is now coached by former Hong Kong manager Kim Pangon.
Andersen also wanted to bring back Hong Kong internationals who are currently playing in mainland China for the qualification. “We have very close contact with these players as they are all very important to the team,” he said. “Unfortunately they cannot come back for the training session but I want them to rejoin the team in Malaysia for the international friendly which will take place under the Fifa playing window.
“It would be even better if they can join us for the training camp in Thailand, but it all depends on the schedule of the Chinese Super League as we do not know when it is going to start.”
Midfield powerhouse Tan Chun-lok has been with Guangzhou City for two seasons in the Chinese Super League and the 26-year-old, a regular member of the Hong Kong representative team, scored against Cambodia in the 2022 World Cup Asian zone qualifiers. Other players on the mainland include centre half Leung Nok-hang of Zhejiang, Vas Nunez of Meizhou Hakka and Li Ngai-hoi who plays for League One club Nantong in Jiangsu.
