Typhoon Saola puts dent in Kitchee’s AFC Champions League preparations, as storm forces top-flight games to be postponed
- Saturday’s Hong Kong Premier League matches postponed with No 8 signal still in effect
- Kitchee now won’t play again until four days before their first game in Group F against Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors
Typhoon Saola did minimal damage as it passed through Hong Kong, but it still managed to put a dent in Kitchee’s preparations for the start of the AFC Champions League.
The treble winners’ game against Eastern on Saturday was postponed because a No 8 signal was still in effect, depriving coach Alex Chu Chi-kwong and his team of vital playing time.
Another earlier match between Kwoon Chung Southern and Football Club at 3pm was also postponed.
With a Fifa playing window stopping domestic football for two weeks as Hong Kong play Cambodia and Brunei, Kitchee won’t play again until September 16, when they face Lee Man in the Premier League, just four days before their first match in the continental competition.
Their first game is against South Korean side Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors, who are favourites to win Group F, and Chu said he needed as much time to prepare as possible for the “crucial match”.
“It’s always bound to happen that there is something out of your control and we will have to work out another plan to prepare for it,” Chu said.
