AFC Champions League Two: Hong Kong game won’t stop Eastern going all out against Sanfrecce
Eastern coach Roberto Losada eyes opportunity for notable win, with Japanese side facing crunch weekend domestic clash
Roberto Losada has vowed Eastern will come out with all guns blazing for their dead-rubber AFC Champions League Two game against group leaders Sanfrecce Hiroshima on Thursday.
The Hong Kong side have lost four of their five group matches and were mathematically eliminated following a 4-1 home defeat against Sydney FC last week.
And about 72 hours after full-time in Japan, four Eastern players will be involved in Hong Kong’s East Asian Football Federation Championship qualifier against Mongolia.
The Hong Kong fixture, at Mong Kok Stadium, falls outside official Fifa windows, but Eastern have no issues with releasing the quartet of Yapp Hung-fai, Alex Jojo, Jesse Yu Joy-yin and Ng Yu-hei.
Sanfrecce have already cruised through to the last 16 as group winners and go into the final day of the J1 League season on Sunday only a point behind leaders Vissel Kobe. However, they must win a tricky-looking trip to fourth-placed Gamba Osaka to have any chance of landing the championship.
“My mind is to go with a full team,” said Losada, whose club would pocket US$50,000 (HK$389,000) for victory. “We have to try to win, if we can.
