Asian Games 2023: Hong Kong football boss Andersen aiming to muscle way past Japan and into final
Hong Kong produced the shock of the week with a 1-0 win over a supposedly superior Iran sideNow head coach is working on a plan to overcome another team that will start as strong favourites on WednesdayAsian Games 2023Paul McNamaraPublished: 9:00pm, 2 Oct, 2023Why you can trust SCMP
Jorn Andersen said everything was still possible in Hong Kong’s remarkable Asian Games campaign – and his team would aim to overpower Japan in Wednesday’s semi-final.
The Norwegian masterminded a shock 1-0 quarter-final victory over Iran, employing the counter-attacking style that saw his team past Palestine to overcome the four-time champions.
Japan have won all four of their matches in Hangzhou, scoring 13 goals and conceding only two. Iran boasted a similarly daunting record before meeting Hong Kong, and Poon Pui-hin’s winner was the only time their defence was breached in the competition.
“We stand a chance against everybody, Japan will be a different match, they are a younger team but have many high-quality players,” Andersen said.