AFC Champions League draw: Kitchee learn group stage fate, with Austria’s Jakob Jantscher latest star arrival

Kitchee revealed another heavyweight signing to strengthen their hopes in the AFC Champions League, with the draw for the 2023-24 competition made at the regional governing body’s headquarters in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday.

Austria international and Sturm Graz star Jakob Jantscher will become part of the set-up for the Hong Kong champions when they feature in group F alongside two-time winners Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors of South Korea, Lion City Sailors of Singapore, and Bangkok United of Thailand.

It is believed the 34-year-old striker, who played for his country in the Uefa European Championship in 2016, will finish playing for his club this weekend before arriving in Hong Kong next week, giving him ample time before Kitchee’s first group stage away match against Jeonbuk on September 19.

Jantscher also played for the Austrian side in the third round of Uefa Champions League qualifying last week where they lost to PSV Eindhoven of the Netherlands 3-1 at home, and 7-2 on aggregate. He was brought on for the last 10 minutes of the match and hit the woodwork in stoppage time.

“We are happy to have such a classy new player and I watched the video footage of his shot that hit the post in the match against Eindhoven, great style,” head coach Alex Chu Chi-kwong said.

“He may need some time to get acclimatised to the conditions here but his arrival will definitely help the team with his vast experience and exposure in top-class football.”

Jantscher also played for Austrian giants Red Bull Salzburg in his home country for three seasons from 2010 to 2013, scoring 20 goals in 65 appearances. He was the Player of the Year in the Austrian Football Bundesliga in the 2021-22 season with Sturm Graz, and also featured in the league’s Best XI that season.