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AFC Asian Cup: historic first goal since 1968 shows Hong Kong can shine, scorer Philip Chan says as long wait ends
- ‘I thought my finish was a little bit lucky, but I followed the coach’s orders,’ Chan says of his contribution in defeat by United Arab Emirates
- But Hong Kong players are left incensed by VAR decisions, with Oliver Gerbig saying ‘the guy dived’ to earn UAE’s second of two soft penalties
Philip Chan Siu-kwan claimed he was lucky to score the goal that reannounced Hong Kong on the Asian Cup stage, but reluctantly or otherwise, he entered the annals of local football as the man who ended a 56-year wait.
But rather than checking the history books, the modest Chan said he was happy his strike had shown his teammates they could flourish at the tournament after their long absence and despite being its lowest-ranked team.
Midfielder Chan capped an exceptional personal performance at Khalifa International Stadium when he stole in front of dozing left-back Zayed Sultan to volley home Everton Camargo’s cross. Not that he was keen to stand out.
“We played a good game, and my goal shows the team everyone is capable of scoring against these strong opponents,” Chan told the Post.
“I thought my finish was a little bit lucky, but I followed the coach’s orders, he tells the midfielders to be aggressive and get into those areas. I hope it will be the first of many goals for me.”
Late bloomer Chan is a confirmed favourite of head coach Jorn Andersen, who calls the spiky 31-year-old a “mentality player”.
And the Tai Po man’s robust mindset was reflected in his disappointment over Hong Kong’s defeat by a team 86 places above them in the Fifa standings, in 64th-ranked UAE.
“We were very aggressive and threatened a team that is much higher, and more developed football-wise,” Chan said.
“We have been preparing for a long time, and that showed on the pitch. We are so disappointed with the result, and that shows how we have progressed.”
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The disappointment stemmed from decisions going against them. UAE were awarded a soft first-half penalty for handball by Oliver Gerbig, then scored from the spot again after Yahya al-Ghassani’s fall in the box.
Michael Udebuluzor was desperately unlucky to have a late strike ruled out for handball, and a shove on fellow Hong Kong forward Stefan Pereira in the area did not merit a second look from referee Muhammad Taqi.
“The referee was against us all night … it was poor,” Gerbig said. “Both penalties were very harsh, and he was only booking our players.
“The VAR checked all three decisions for UAE [penalties and disallowed goal], and none of ours. The penalty against me, where am I supposed to put my hand? A yellow card for that was ridiculous. The second one, the guy dived.
“I do not know why they disallowed Michael’s goal. Then we had another 50-50 [penalty appeal], and they did not even check it. The scoreline does not reflect the game at all, and it is tough to take.”
Philip Chan Siu-kwan claimed he was lucky to score the goal that reannounced Hong Kong on the Asian Cup stage, but reluctantly or otherwise, he entered the annals of local football as the man who ended a 56-year wait.
But rather than checking the history books, the modest Chan said he was happy his strike had shown his teammates they could flourish at the tournament after their long absence and despite being its lowest-ranked team.
Midfielder Chan capped an exceptional personal performance at Khalifa International Stadium when he stole in front of dozing left-back Zayed Sultan to volley home Everton Camargo’s cross. Not that he was keen to stand out.
“We played a good game, and my goal shows the team everyone is capable of scoring against these strong opponents,” Chan told the Post.
“I thought my finish was a little bit lucky, but I followed the coach’s orders, he tells the midfielders to be aggressive and get into those areas. I hope it will be the first of many goals for me.”
Late bloomer Chan is a confirmed favourite of head coach Jorn Andersen, who calls the spiky 31-year-old a “mentality player”.
And the Tai Po man’s robust mindset was reflected in his disappointment over Hong Kong’s defeat by a team 86 places above them in the Fifa standings, in 64th-ranked UAE.
“We were very aggressive and threatened a team that is much higher, and more developed football-wise,” Chan said.
“We have been preparing for a long time, and that showed on the pitch. We are so disappointed with the result, and that shows how we have progressed.”
The disappointment stemmed from decisions going against them. UAE were awarded a soft first-half penalty for handball by Oliver Gerbig, then scored from the spot again after Yahya al-Ghassani’s fall in the box.
Michael Udebuluzor was desperately unlucky to have a late strike ruled out for handball, and a shove on fellow Hong Kong forward Stefan Pereira in the area did not merit a second look from referee Muhammad Taqi.
“The referee was against us all night … it was poor,” Gerbig said. “Both penalties were very harsh, and he was only booking our players.
“The VAR checked all three decisions for UAE [penalties and disallowed goal], and none of ours. The penalty against me, where am I supposed to put my hand? A yellow card for that was ridiculous. The second one, the guy dived.
“I do not know why they disallowed Michael’s goal. Then we had another 50-50 [penalty appeal], and they did not even check it. The scoreline does not reflect the game at all, and it is tough to take.”