World Cup qualifying blow: injured midfielder Andy Naegelein to miss Hong Kong's first match
The utility player was unable to play in a friendly in Malaysia and will probably return for the Maldives clash
Hong Kong's preparations for their opening World Cup Asian qualifier suffered a blow after utility man Andy Naegelein was injured during their training camp in Malaysia.
The Eastern midfielder did not feature in their match against Malaysia Super League side Felda on Wednesday night because of an ankle problem. Chan Man-fai and Lee Ka-yiu scored in the second half for a 2-1 win.
Coach Kim Pan-gon said Naegelein would not be fit to face Malaysia in a friendly tomorrow, nor for their opening qualifier against Bhutan at Mong Kok Stadium on Thursday.
Andy is now working closely with our conditioning coach and we have targeted a return for the second qualifying match against Maldives
"Andy is now working closely with our conditioning coach and we have targeted a return for the second qualifying match against Maldives," said the coach.
Kim was impressed with Hong Kong in their first outing, especially the newcomers. "Ka-yiu scored a beautiful goal while fullback Cheng King-ho also did very well. Also, central defender Sean Kilama is getting better and better," he said.
With the absence of prolific striker Chan Siu-ki, who tore knee ligaments in late April, the coach tried a number of options including a front three of Christian Annan, Jaimes McKee and Xu Deshuai.
Striker Chan, meanwhile, has renewed his South China contract for two more years, becoming one of the highest-paid local players with an annual wage believed to be close to HK$1 million.
