AFC Champions League Two: ‘very difficult’ for Lee Man to progress after Bangkok victory
Hong Kong champions have lost all three of their games in the continental competition, Eastern match delayed by Storm Trami
Coach Szeto Man-chun said Lee Man were in a “very difficult situation” in the AFC Champions League Two, after a brilliant goal from Bangkok United forward Bassel Jradi condemned the Hong Kong champions to a 1-0 defeat at Mong Kok Stadium on Thursday.
Fears over a poor attendance for the 6pm kick-off proved well founded, with only 892 fans turning up for the game.
Asian football chiefs have revamped their club competitions this season, but this new second-tier tournament is failing to stoke interest in its early stages. Lee Man’s three matches, all defeats, have been watched by a total of 3,922 people: an average of 1,307 per game.
The gallant home fans who showed up backed their team to the hilt, with incessant chanting and drumming, and Szeto said his players could “fully feel the passion of the supporters”.
Lee Man repaid that backing with their best display of this season’s competition in a game packed with incident. It finished with a raging Jradi being marched down the tunnel by Bangkok officials, after confronting Lee Man defender Dudu at the final whistle.
Jradi motioned for Dudu to following him into the changing rooms, before being asked by Ismaeel Habib Ali, the referee, to return to the field so he could be booked.
