Asian Champions League 2 Preview

Between 2012 and 2023 Kitchee qualified for either the Asian Champions League or the AFC Cup every season. After consecutive fourth place finishes in the league and a lack of cup success ruined the streak, their title win last season earned them a return, albeit the restructuring of Asian club competitions means they enter the second tier Asian Champions League 2. While Kitchee lost four of six games in the 2023/24 Champions League, they did make history in 2022 by becoming the first Hong Kong team to reach the knockout stages, and in 2018 they were the first Hong Kong team to win a game.

Kitchee will be looking to make Mong Kok Stadium into a fortress for the competition, with the small stadium hopefully being intimidating to players used to much bigger stadia. As Kitchee used Hong Kong Stadium in 2023/24, and the two previous campaigns were hosted in neutral venues due to COVID-19, Kitchee have not played a continental game at Mong Kok since April 2019. Kitchee club president Ken Ng stated after winning the league in May that the aim was to go one better than in 2022, meaning the quarter finals. This is a rather ambitious aim, but a slightly favourable group draw will have fans dreaming. But fans are not being arrogant or complacent; given the vast sums spent by clubs across Asian football, Kitchee will be underdogs.

Kitchee have never played any of our opponents before, so in this preview we look at Kitchee's record against teams from their leagues. We also look at key players and tactics that we can expect, and look at the experience in Kitchee's squad when it comes to continental competition. 

Kitchee have lost all five previous encounters with South Korean opposition, with a qualifying defeat on penalties to Ulsan in 2017 coming in between four losses to Jeonbuk Hyundai, in 2018 and 2023/24. Against Malaysian opponents Kitchee have picked up three wins, two draws and three defeats, with one of these being another qualifying penalty shootout, this time against Perak in 2019. Kitchee are yet to take on any Cambodian opposition in a competitive fixture, but Hong Kong have played Cambodia a lot in recent years, suffering a first defeat in over fifty years in June.

Note: venues and times subject to change. All times given are in HKT.

Gangwon- 17/9 8.15pm (home), 26/11 6pm (away)

History and route to ACL2

Founded in 2008, they have never won a trophy. They did finish second in the K League in 2024, which qualified them for last seasons ACL Elite (their first foray into Asian competition. They were knocked out byeventual runners up Machida Zelvia in the last sixteen after beating Shanghai Shenhua and Vissel Kobe in the group. Gangwon had a long fascination with merely making it into continental football, and are determined to win their first trophy. Given their league position Gangwon could still make the ACL Elite through the league but will fancy their chances at winning ACL2 and qualifying that way- they are probably up there with FC Seoul and Machida Zelvia as the strongest East Asian sides.

Key players and tactics

Lee Gi-hyuk

The majority of their squad is Korean, with star centre back Lee Gi-Hyuk starting all three games for South Korea at the recent World Cup. He previously made his debut against Hong Kong in 2022 EAFF, a game where veteran left back Hong Chul scored and assisted. Forward Kim Dae-Won was Gangwon's top scorer last season, and also contributed seven assists.

Despite foreign player limits being abolished in Asian competitions, Gangwon do heavily rely on their locally developed talent, and young players get regular minutes. New signing Karim Mammar is a Swedish centre back who has mostly played in Sweden, and he may partner Montenegrin international Marko Tuci, who has been at Gangwon for three years. In attack recent arrivals Nigerian winger Jesse Sekidika and former Israeli youth international forward Abdallah Hleihel will pose major threats to our defence. Sekidika played at Brooke House College with captain Tan Chun-lok, before playing for Benfica's academy and clubs in Serbia, Turkey and Azerbaijan, while Hleihel has spent the bulk of his career in his homeland. For the opening game Gangwon will be without star player Lee Gi-hyuk as well as Lee Seung-won and Shin Ma-ha through Asian Games commitments.

With a deep squad and dealing with a few injuries and suspensions Gangwon have changed their line up frequently in recent weeks, making it hard to predict. Typically they set up in a 4231 or 442 while pressing high, although there have been experiments with 541 and 343 while counterattacking. Given the talent they possess relative to Kitchee and other teams in the group, we will likely see them pressing high. Gangwon seek to create triangles and overloads in central areas, and attack the half-spaces, often with wide players cutting inside.

Chung Kyung-ho

Manager

Former assistant Chung Kyung-ho took over in December 2024 after Yoon Jong-hwan could not negotiate a new contract after securing second place in the K League. Gangwon is his first managerial role; he had spent the last decade as an assistant across Korean football. He took Gangwon to the ACL Elite knockout stages in their first continental appearance. An experienced South Korean international, he went to the 2006 World Cup.

Kuching City FC- away 8.15pm 15/10, home 8.15pm 3/12

History and route to ACL2

Founded as Kuching FA in 2015 to represent the Kuching district in Sarawak, they rebranded as Kuching City FC in 2021. They have only been in the Malaysian Super League since 2023, and finished 4th and 2nd over the last two seasons, and given the dominance of Johor Darul Tazim (JDT) no other club stands a chance of success. They rose through the leagues, starting off in the fourth tier and reached the first tier after only seven years as a club. Qualified for their maiden continental adventure by finishing second in the league after JDT secured the double yet again.

Key players and tactics

Safawi Rasid

Kuching have a number of local and foreign players on loan from JDT, which would not be allowed in many leagues around the world. Experienced attacker Safawi Rasid is one of these, a two time Malaysian player of the year. He has over seventy international caps and twenty two goals, including one against Hong Kong in 2022. Goalkeeper Haziq Nadzli spent eight years as a backup at JDT, and kept fourteen clean sheets for Kuching last season, while left winger Ramadhan Saifullah also spent time at JDT, before joining Kuching in 2024 initially on loan, and had over twenty goal contributions last season. Bosnian striker Ajdin Mujagic has just been signed on loan from JDT, and has scored twenty five goals in just over a year in Malaysia, firstly for Sabah. Australian winger Dylan Wenzel-Halls joined this summer after two outstanding years with Penang, and won the 23/24 AFC Cup (essentially the precursor competition) with Central Coast Mariners. Towering Brazilian Gabriel Peres made twenty two goal contributions in just over seventy games for Sabah before moving this summer, an insane record for a centre back, while they are captained by three capped Nigerian centre back James Okwuosa (who played with Kitchee flop Ogenyi Onazi in all three of his international games).

Kuching spent the start of last season typically in a 433 or 442 setup, but as the season progressed they also utilised 352 and 343. Despite only playing six games so far this season they have already used three different formations as they search for their best eleven. Kuching often start games aggressively, aiming to force mistakes and win territory. They also attempt a pragmatic pressing strategy, targeting key players but still keeping an element of composure. When playing a three at the back, the wing backs tend to push high and wide, becoming a 325 shape in possession, and the presence of three centre backs allows the wingbacks to function as auxiliary wingers and in Aidil Sharin they have a very adaptable head coach who alters the shape depending on the opponent and the game state.

Aidil Sharin

Manager

Kuching are managed by Singaporean Aidil Sharin, who has been in charge for nearly three years. Spent four years as an assistant at Home United in Singapore (now called Lion City Sailors) and two years as manager, before managing Kedah of Malaysia and Persikabo 1973 of Indonesia before joining Kuching in August 2023. He was in charge of Kedah when they beat Tai Po 5-1 in qualifying for the 2020 ACL, with new Kitchee signing Dudu captaining Tai Po, and has had deep runs in the AFC Cup with Home United in 2017 and 2018 and with Kedah in 2022.

Phnom Penh Crown- away 8.15pm 29/10, home 6pm 5/11

History and route to ACL2

Founded in 2001 as Smart United, they are eight time Cambodian champions (a national record), most recently in 2022, and were runner up last season. They reached the knockout stages of the 23/24 AFC Cup and the 25/26 Challenge League- in the latter they lost to compatriots and eventual runners up PKR Svay Rieng in the quarter finals.

Key players

Chanpolin Orn

Captain and talisman Chanpolin Orn came through the academy and has been captain for six years, winning multiple league titles and is closing in on fifty international caps. He may play in central midfield with youngster Samuel Bong, who scored on his international debut. Diminutive forwards Ty Sa and Yem Devit will pose a threat up front. Centre backs Rick Ketting (Dutch) and Raul Feher (Romanian) both had reasonable careers in second tier European leagues before both moving to Cambodia in 2025, while English born Australian midfielder Callum Timmins brings a lot of experience from the A League. In attack Phnom Penh have a number of options; giant Czech striker David Bares had a solid career in lower leagues in Europe, New Zealand international Moses Dyer scored twenty four goals last season for Phnom Penh, while Dutch/Surinamese forward Guytho Mijland did the same for Angkor Tiger before earning a move in the summer. Ukrainian striker Valeriy Gryshyn returned to Phnom Penh in February after two and a half years away, and often drops into midfield to act as a playmaker.  

Phnom Penh are also a team who are comfortable using a back three, and also push the wingbacks high and wide, typically starting in a 343 which turns into a 325 in possession. With wingbacks supplying the width, their attacking players can operate the space in between and really stretch the opposition. In the 343 setup the two central midfielders have major responsibility to protect against counter attacks and covering the wingbacks. Out of possession Phnom Penh drop into a back five, but if the wingbacks are high when possession is lost they can be vulnerable in transition.

Oleg Starynskyi

Manager

Phnom Penh have a very multinational coaching setup, with Cambodians working alongside a Ukrainian manager and assistant, an Italian assistant, an Egyptian goalkeeping coach and a Spanish physio. Ukrainian Oleg Starynskyi has been manager of Phnom Penh since November 2020. He overlapped on Shakhtar Donetsk's academy coaching staff with former Kitchee boss Edgar Cardoso prior to moving to Cambodia. He had previously been on the staff at Phnom Penh between January 2016 and December 2017, and has also worked in Moldova. Has won two league titles and three domestic cups with Phnom Penh.

Given the turnover of Kitchee's squad in recent years, only four current players featured in Kitchee's 23/24 campaign. Ruslan Mingazov played in four of those games, but was more effective in the 2022 campaign, scoring the winner against Chiangrai United and playing ninety minutes in the historic draw with Vissel Kobe. He also brings experience of Champions League and Europa League qualifiying from his time in Europe. Cheng Chin-lung came on three times in 23/24, but is most remembered for his historic winner against Kashiwa Reyol in 2018. Tan Chun-lok and Juninho featured sparingly in 23/24, but do bring nearly ninety combined Hong Kong appearances worth of experience.

Of the new signings, Dudu and Everton were both a part of Lee Man's shambolic 24/25 ACL2 campaign, with Everton grabbing a goal. As mentioned earlier, Dudu captained Tai Po in 2020 ACL qualifying against Aidil Sharin's Kedah, while Everton contributed to victory against Bali United in 23/24 qualifying. Yumemi Kanda scored a screamer for Rangers in 23/24 qualifying, but they could not hold on for victory. Marcos was injured for the entirety of Tai Po's campaign last season, but being around a side who went unbeaten at home will be important to the squad. 

Asier Illarramendi has the most continental experience in the squad, with it being well-known that he was a part of Real Madrid's 2013/14 victorious Champions League campaign. He also captained Real Sociedad four times in the Europa League, and he will be pivotal to any success Kitchee are to have in the competition. Roger Riera won the UEFA Youth League with Barcelona, captaining five games including the final.

The recent changes to Asian club competitions have removed foreign player limits, but it is still likely that Inigo Calderon uses a number of local players. The three at the back worked so well last year but has been less effective so far in 25/26, with Kitchee's dominant win over Eastern District coming with a conventional back four. 

Tickets for the Asian Champions League 2 games are available on Kitchee's ticketing website. Tickets are $180 plus booking fee per game, or there is a package available for $460+$15 booking fee for all three games. Ticket link

Thanks to Ross Davis from K League English for the help on previewing Gangwon FC and Lester Chan from Offside for helping to preview Phnom Penh Crown FC. You can find their socials linked.

Please follow us on social media to stay up to date with the latest Kitchee news. We are at over 650 followers on Instagram and are at over 400 on Facebook. Facebook Instagram

Written by Adam O'Domhnaill

Big win in first home game of the season- Kitchee 4 Eastern District 1

Summary

A dominant Kitchee tore Eastern District apart on Sunday night, with two goals in each half sealing a comfortable win, although the defence will be annoyed to give up the clean sheet in the closing exchanges. First half goals from Marcos and Obieta gave Kitchee a two goal lead, with Camarasa and Adrian scoring in the second half. Former Kitchee man Li Ngai-hoi (one of eight Eastern District players to spend time at Kitchee) scored a late consolation. 

Team news

Kitchee made three changes from last weeks draw with North District, with Beattie, Haddow and Illarramendi all starting for the first time this season as Calderon switched to a back four, with Adrian, Jason and Chan Shing-chun making way. There were home debuts for Dudu, Marcos, Camarasa, Everton and Obieta. Juninho returned from his head injury to take his place on the bench, and with five players still away with the Hong Kong under 20s Kitchee only named eight substitutes. 

Bear; Haddow (Ari 52), Dudu, Marcos, Beattie; Illarramendi (Lok 79), Camarasa (Lung 64), Kendy (Jordan 64); Mingazow (c) (Adrian 56), Obieta (Juninho 56), Everton

Unused subs: Jason, Tuscany

Match events

Everton hit the post early from an offside position, as Kitchee dominated the opening exchanges. Kendy whipped in a dangerous freekick, and after Illarramendi's effort was blocked, Marcos opened his goalscoring account for Kitchee. Charlie Scott, playing against Kitchee for the first time since leaving two years ago then narrowly missed with a trademark longshot. Kitchee thought they had doubled their lead after a lovely through ball from Jay Haddow found an offside Mingazow, who squared it to Obieta to score, but VAR overturned the decision. Bear held on to a powerful Lucas Silva header, and Everton went close before Obieta scored after another Kitchee attack. Kendy drove with the ball from deep and found Mingazow in a central area, who played in Obieta for his second goal of the season in first half stoppage time.

Illarramendi went close to adding a third with acrobatic effort, before Kendy set up Victor Camarasa to score his first goal for nearly three years, while Luizinho nearly pulled a goal back after a Kitchee defensive mixup. Substitute Adrian Revilla scored a long range effort to make it four, and then cleared one of the line, before Li Ngai-hoi scored a consolation header.

Fan feedback

The back four performed much better, and Kitchee looked more menacing in attack, as Everton and Mingazow could commit fully. Camarasa and Illarramendi were very good in midfield, while after ineffective displays last week Mingazow and Kendy were much improved. Marcos was solid at the back and scored, while also bringing the ball out from the back. The defence and Bear will be annoyed at sacrificing the clean sheet, but with Kitchee having two goals ruled out for offside and going close a few times it could have been even more of an offensive masterclass. There will be some concern that Kitchee may risk burning Mingazow and Everton out, with the veteran forwards both having played every minute so far. The young players being at the under 20s gave Calderon limited options, but given how comfortable the game was maybe they could have come off earlier. The substitutes helped Kitchee rest some tired legs, and there was a goalscoring cameo for Adrian, while Ari Lam and Juninho played well, the latter making a rapid recovery from his head injury last week.

What's next

We next take on Southern away, 4pm in Aberdeen on 12th September, before our ACL adventure begins the following Thursday against Gangwon at Mong Kok on the 17th. We'll be posting an ACL preview in the coming days previewing our three opponents. We will have our five Hong Kong under 20s representatives back, as Hong Kong could only pick up one point and one goal from the three game- scored by winger Cheung Yiu-hin, who started all three games. Chan Shing-chun (2 starts) and Li Siu-hin (2 sub appearances) also featured, with Yu Ching-wai and Liang Kui-chung unused. The senior Hong Kong side will be playing in the ASEAN Cup at Kai Tak, with group games against Laos on the 27th and Brunei on the 30th, with a potential final afterwards, and Kitchee had ten players called up to the preliminary squad with a first callup for Tuscany Shek, and Callum Beattie could also earn his first cap after administration issues and injury have denied him a cap so far.

Please follow us on social media to stay up to date with the latest Kitchee news. We are at over 650 followers on Instagram and are at over 400 on Facebook. Facebook Instagram

Photo credits SportsRoad

Match highlights

Written by Adam O'Domhnaill

Goalless draw up North as Kitchee falter in final third- North District 0 Kitchee 0

Summary

A hot day in Sheung Shui saw Kitchee held to a 0-0 draw for the first time in over two years. A very attacking Kitchee line up could not find a way through, as both defences made clearances off the line, albeit neither goal was threatened regularly. The second half was marred by a potentially serious injury to Juninho, but he has been released from hospital and is on the mend.

Line up

Kitchee made four changes, and tweaked the shape to resemble a 352 formation, with Kendy slightly more advanced than the other two central midfielders. Kendy came into the side alongside debutant Victor Camarasa, Jason Kam and youngster Chan Shing-chun. Riera and Kanda dropped out of the matchday squad, with Tan Chun-lok and Jordan Lam dropping to the bench. Asier Illarramendi returned to the bench. Four Kitchee youngsters were away in Qatar for Asian Cup qualifying with Hong Kong under 20s; Chan Shing-chun would join the squad afterwards.

Bear; Dudu, Jason (Haddow 70), Marcao; Mingazow (c), Shingchun (Lok 38), Kendy (Juninho 60 (Lung 79), Camarasa (Beattie 70), Everton; Adrian, Obieta (Illarramendi 60)

Unused subs: Tuscany, Jordan, Ari

Match events

Vinicius Soares went close early on as Dudu failed to deal with a long ball, before Kendy played in Mingazow, whose shot was easily saved. The dangerous Vinicius tried his luck from long range, with Bear just about dealing with it, and the Brazilian got himself free on the right, but Granada's shot from the resulting cross was cleared off the line by Marcos. In a first half of few clear cut chances, North District were the better side.

North District continued their impressive play, with Jahangir Khan's cross from the left evading everyone on both teams. Having brought Tan Chun-lok on in the first half for youngster Chan Shing-Chun, Calderon turned to the veterans Illarramendi and Juninho to try and seize the iniative. Shortly after his introduction Juninho played a lovely ball through to Everton, who saw his effort saved. With twenty minutes to go Calderon switched to a back four, moving Juninho into the 10 role. NDFC dealt with a threatening ball in but only cleared as far as Everton; his dinked ball in was almost headed home by Juninho, but he collided with the post in a gruesome injury which required stitches. His replacement Cheng Chin-lung saw his late effort cleared off the line by Andy Wong, while Carles Paez had North District's final big chance, heading goalwards from a corner, but Bear was equal to it.

Fan feedback

It was a bit of a disjointed performance on Saturday, with Kitchee dominating possession but being unable to make it count and having very few clear-cut chances. The passing and crossing in the final third was largely poor- if Calderon wants to continue with two out and out strikers then the wide players need to improve their crossing accuracy. Kitchee cannot have Everton and Mingazow as the sole wide players, as they no longer have the engines to also do their defensive duties. We saw Vinicius Soares getting into lots of space down either side as the wingbacks were far too high up. Juninho had a bright cameo before his injury, while his replacement Cheng Chin-lung also did well and had Kitchee's best chance of the match cleared off the line. Kitchee starting so many attackers left the bench options limited, although the plan B of switching to a back four brought some bright passages of play.

Debut watch

Victor Camarasa. The experienced midfield had some nice touches and gave Kitchee a bit of impetus with Illarramendi and Tan Chun-lok on the bench. He lasted seventy minutes in his first game for four months, and his first start for well over an hour. With the wingbacks positioned so high he had his fair share of defensive work to get through, and he went about this diligently. 

What's next

First home game of the season against EDFC at TKO. 6.30pm kick off on 6th September for our first home game of the season. Kitchee will continue to be without five youngsters away with the under 20s. Juninho may miss out depending on how his recovery goes, given he had seven stitches put in last week.

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Photo credits SportsRoad

Written by Adam O'Domhnaill

Debutants to the rescue as Kitchee battle to hard-fought opening day win- Rangers 2 Kitchee 3

Summary

Kitchee had their debutants to thank for an opening day win, as a brace from Everton helped seal victory against an improved Rangers side. Everton scored a freekick in the first half, but Kitchee could not add a second, and were stunned when Rangers scored two goals either side of the hour mark to take a shock lead. But Kitchee turned it around with Koldo Obieta scoring a penalty after being fouled, and Everton firing in a winner. Kitchee held on to start the season with three points, but leave Inigo Calderon with plenty to think about moving forward.

Line up

Calderon handed out four debutants for the season opener, with last season's player of the year Asier Illarramendi being rested after sustaining a minor injury. Dudu and Marcao started in the back three, with Everton and Koldo Obieta alongside Adrian in the front three. Tuscany and Yu Ching-wai were named on the bench after spending last season on loan in Spain.

Bear; Riera (Haddow 71), Dudu, Marcao; Mingazov, Kanda (Kendy 57), Lok (c) (Shingchun 71), Jordan (Beattie 57); Everton, Adrian (Juninho 83), Obieta

Unused subs: Tuscany, Lung, Jason, Siuhin, Ari, Cheung Yiu-hin, Yu Ching-wai

Match events

Kitchee failed to deal with a long ball forward and Rangers new signing Tiko put the ball in the net, but it was disallowed for offside. Everton opened his Kitchee account with an excellent freekick that left Yip rooted to the spot. Bear made a sharp save to keep out Zazei's header, and he punched away a few dangerous crosses to keep Kitchee ahead at half time.

Just after half time Yip denied Everton from doubling his account, before five minutes of madness left Kitchee stunned. Nathan Lourenco scored a stunning long range effort to equalise after a well-worked corner, and Marcao's missed header allowed Ibrahim to score from close range, although there were some suspicions of offside, and HKFA's budget still does not extend to having VAR at every game this season. Koldo Obieta was hauled down at a corner, and stepped up to score the resulting penalty, with Adrian having had enough of Yip's timewasting, earning himself a yellow card for pushing him over. Li Wing-ho hit the crossbar, before Everton finally scored his second goal. He played Obieta through, and although his cross was cleared, Everton hit in the rebound, before being denied a hat trick by another good save from Yip.

Fan feedback

A lot of Kitchee's build up through midfield was disjointed. At times the wingbacks were far too high, leaving the three centre backs under pressure with limited passing options. This drastically needs to be improved moving forward, but the return of Asier Illarramendi will help with this. Everton was fantastic as expected, becoming the first Kitchee player to score a brace on his debut since Juninho in 2023. Everton has now scored 98 HKPL goals, and going back to last season he has scored four braces in his last five HKPL games. Kitchee were given a much tougher task by Rangers than in previous years; Rangers had only scored one goal in their last six games, and had not scored two league goals against Kitchee since 2012. Their first goal was superb, and Bear had little chance, and the second goal may have been offside. But beyond this Kitchee still had to make a number of last-gasp interventions, and Rangers also hit the bar. The mistakes made in this game need to be eliminated, but a tough test to start the season helpfully helps in the long run with Kitchee avoiding complacency.

Debut watch

Everton scored two goals and was a constant threat. Koldo Obieta showed some nice linkup play and scored a penalty. Both were involved in positive linkup play. Dudu and Marcao struggled a bit in getting the ball forward, although the structure of the midfield meant their options were limited. Dudu made a couple of decisive blocks, and while Marcao could have done better with dealing with the ball in the build up to the second goal he was ok. Still a bit rusty but the same could be said for all players so it would be harsh to single out debutants.

What's next

North District away in Sheung Shui, Saturday 29th at 3pm. We may see a debut for Victor Camarasa, the former Spanish youth international central midfielder who counts Crystal Palace, Cardiff City and Real Betis amongst his former clubs.

Please follow us on social media to stay up to date with the latest Kitchee news. We are at over 650 followers on Instagram and are at over 400 on Facebook. Facebook Instagram

Photo credits: Footballgraphy 

Match highlights

Written by Adam O'Domhnaill

Summer review as league returns this week and Kitchee find out continental opponents

The Hong Kong Premier League is back, as Kitchee seek to defend their title and be competitive in the Asian Champions League 2. Here we'll summarise the ins and outs over the summer and what to look forward to, with Kitchee getting their season underway away at Rangers in Tsing Yi, 6.30pm on 22nd August.

Kitchee's first game in Thailand was against Prime Bangkok of the third tier. Kitchee were dominant, winning 4-0 thanks to first half goals for Everton and Cheng Chin-lung, and a brace for Koldo Obieta off the bench in the second half. This was the first game for Kitchee's four new signings, plus sixteen year old forward Sephrey Ma off the bench.

Kitchee then took on Ratchaburi of Thai League 1, who will compete in the Asian Champions League Elite this season, and reached the quarter finals of last season's ACL2. Kitchee conceded two goals in the first half to succumb to a 2-0 defeat, but were not overawed by a strong team.

Kitchee's final televised friendly saw them take on PT Prachuap, also of Thai League 1, who finished in the top half last season. After going behind, Adrian Revilla equalised before half time in a physical game that saw multiple bench-clearing arguments involving players and staff.

There were lots of positive signs, with Calderon being tactically flexible, often starting with a 3421 or 352 formation but also fielding a 433. The players were able to switch between the two in and out of possession, and the four new signings, two returning loanees and Sephrey Ma promoted from the academy all got regular minutes. 

In the Hong Kong Jockey Club Youth Summit, Kitchee's u18 side beat Manchester United's under 16s on penalties, with Ari Lam scoring early on to give Kitchee the lead. Despite conceding a late equaliser, Kitchee emerged victorious on penalties, with substitute goalkeeper Dylan Parisi Anzolin making two saves. In a monumental week for Hong Kong youth football, the Hong Kong under sixteen side defeated Manchester United on penalties too, with a number of Kitchee players in the squad.

New signings 

Marcos Santos 'Marcao'. The towering centre back stands at nearly two metres tall, and joins us after three years at Tai Po. He made over sixty appearances in green, scoring eight goals, and won the 24/25 HKPL, and the Senior Shield and FA Cup in 25/26, but unfortunately missed out on playing ACL2 football with Tai Po as he was sidelined for nine months with a serious knee injury. 

Everton. Not a lot that needs to be said, as he has played over two hundred and fifty games for five Hong Kong clubs, and scored nearly a hundred and fifty goals. At Lee Man he won the golden boot back in 22/23 (shared with Dejan and Mingazow), the HKPL in 24/25 and has won multiple cup competitions with Yuen Long, Eastern and Lee Man. Since making his Hong Kong debut after naturalising in 2023 he has contributed twelve goals and fifteen assists in twenty six games, and despite turning thirty five in May there is hopefully plenty left in the tank to take us to further glory, and compete in ACL2. Primarily a right winger, in preseason we also saw him deployed as a narrow right forward or a striker in a front two.

Dudu. Another naturalised Brazilian joins us from Lee Man. A two time league winner, Kitchee are his sixth HKPL club, playing nearly two hundred games in the city. An aerial threat from set pieces, he regularly chips in with goals wherever he has played, and brings another experienced player to our defensive line. Dudu has been a regular part of Hong Kong squads since becoming eligible in early 2024, scoring against Guam in the EAFF final. He once captained Neymar in the Santos academy.

Koldo Obieta. The Spanish striker joins us from Indonesian side Borneo FC Samarinda, where he scored nine in sixteen last season. The thirty two year old spent the bulk of his career in the Spanish leagues (with a short spell in Poland), before moving to Kerala Blasters in India in October 2025, and onto Borneo in January 2026. He will relieve some of the scoring pressure on Adrian, and give us another striking option for ACL2.

Departures 

Wang Zhenpeng. The veteran brought his legendary career to a close after nearly four hundred games, after joining the club in 2005. Kitchee's record appearance holder, this is unlikely to be broken anytime soon, as Cheng Chin-lung with just over a hundred and fifty games has the most appearances of the current squad. Won ten league titles and seventeen cups during his time at Kitchee.

Law Tsz-chun. The versatile academy graduate joined Kitchee aged eleven in 2008, and other than one season out on loan, he remained at Kitchee until this summer. He played a hundred and sixty six games (with five goals and sixteen assists), and was part of the leadership group, captaining regularly. He joins newly promoted Sha Tin. Sadly his final season was heavily disrupted by a broken collarbone sustained while playing for the U22s, and he last played in November. He won twelve trophies at Kitchee, including four league titles, and now joins newly promoted Sha Tin..

Matheus Dantas. The Brazilian centre back played forty six games in two seasons and helped us secure the league title last season. Added solidity in defence that had been lacking, and although his performances dropped off towards the end of 2025-26, he was still nominated for the team of the season. Did not miss a single game through injury.

Anson Wong Ho-chun. Joined in January from Qingdao Hainau. With only one start and a total of less than two hundred minutes, he scored three goals and assisted one, including scoring the goal which sealed our 2-0 win over Rangers and the league title. He moves to Southern District.

Martin Merquelanz. Joined in early February and left at the end of the season. Chipped in with two goals (including a stunning final day freekick) and an assist in his seven games. He returns to Spain with Real Union in the third tier.

Leandro Martinez. Left after a single season where his eleven goals and fourteen assists fired Kitchee to league glory. He also returns to Spain, with Recreativo Huelva in the fourth tier.

Seb Buddle. Retired at the age of twenty seven to take up a role as match analyst at the club. The right-sided player made thirty seven appearances (scoring four times) and was part of four league winning squads.

Matthew Slattery. The young striker graduated from the academy in 2023 and made nineteen appearances, winning the league in his final season, albeit only playing once. A talisman for the U22s, he scored twenty four in thirty three for them, winning the FA Cup twice. He moves on to Kowloon City, alongside Chen Ngo-hin who we have loaned there for the season.

Tun Thurain. Left after six months and only playing ninety two minutes over two games. Featured much more prominently for the U22s, scoring four in nine games, including the second goal in the victorious FA Cup final. He joins Yadanarbon FC in the top tier in his homeland of Myanmar. 

This season

Kitchee found out their opponents for the Asian Champions League 2 on Tuesday. We will take on Gangwon FC of Korea, Kuching City of Malaysia and Phnom Penh Crown of Cambodia. We'll do a more in depth preview and analysis of our opponents once the schedule of games is out.

Kitchee have only conceded one goal in their last six games against Rangers, and have not lost to Saturday's opponents since the Sapling Cup final in 2024. See you at Tsing Yi!

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Photo credits: Kitchee

Written by Adam O'Domhnaill

Wang bows out in entertaining 4-4 draw to close out a successful season- Kitchee 4 Eastern 4

Summary

Photo by Scoop

Kitchee took the lead three times but could not secure all three points, as the final game of the HKPL season was an eight goal thriller. Ruslan Mingazow and Yu Okubo both scored two in the first half, along with a strike from Gondra, as Eastern led 3-2 to potentially rain on Kitchee's title parade. Substitute Merquelanz's stunning freekick and Adrian's effort put Kitchee in the lead going into stoppage time, before Okubo struck again. Kitchee had won the league by nine points, despite only earning two in the championship group, and the title was celebrated long into the night, as was Wang Zhenpeng's retirement after over twenty years and nearly 400 games.

Team news

Photo by Scoop

Kitchee made six changes ahead of the final game of the season. Bear, Dantas, Lok, Chan Shing-chun, Merquelanz and Juninho all dropped to the bench, with Wang, Jordan, Illarramendi, Li Siu-hin, Cheung Yiu-hin and Mingazow coming into the starting lineup. Wang captained the side on his final appearance, and to show his longevity Kitchee started three teenagers (all born after his Kitchee debut) and two 22 year olds, who were under two years old at the time. There was a first professional start for Li Siu-hin, and a first in the league for Cheung Yiu-hin.

Wang (c) (Bear 90); Ari (Buddle 71), Jason, Haddow (Dantas 62), Jordan; Kanda (Leandro 62), Illarramendi, Li Siu-hin (Juninho 62); Mingazow, Adrian, Cheung Yiu-hin (Merquelanz 62)

Unused subs: Law, Lung, Anson, Lok, Slattery, Chan Shing-chun

Match highlights

Photo by Scoop

Kitchee were led out by retiring legend Wang, given the captain's armband in his last game. Ari's first time ball through was scored by Mingazow after an Eastern defensive mixup. Initially this was flagged offside, but VAR correctly overruled the officials. Okubo headed in an equaliser to tie Granada for the Golden Boot, but Eastern were only level for a minute before Mingazow headed in a superb cross from youngster Cheung Yiu-hin. Kitchee switched off from an Eastern freekick in their own half, as Lorenz's ball forward was fired in by Gondra, and as halftime approached Okubo cemented himself as outright top scorer with a lovely goal after Kitchee failed to clear. Kitchee 2 Eastern 3 at half time, and while Kitchee had already secured the league weeks ago, fans did not want to finish on a defeat.

Wang made 2 superb saves with his legs to keep the deficit to one. Just after halftime, Kitchee made a quadruple substitution, with Jay Haddow's head injury giving Kitchee another sub to use later. Soon afterwards, Merquelanz scored an incredible free kick to level the game for the third time, and substitute Leandro teed up Adrian to score from the edge of the box, giving Kitchee the lead with ten minutes left. Seven minutes of stoppage time were announced, and in the fourth of these Wang was ceremonially substituted off for Bear to rapturous applause in celebration of a fantastic career. But in the 5th minute of stoppage time Okubo completed a perfect hat trick (header, rightfoot, leftfoot) to end the game 4-4. A cracking game to end the season, and Kitchee were presented with the trophy. A big summer ahead, with Kitchee ending a two year absence from continental competition

Fan feedback

Photo by HKFA

As has been the same for the last few weeks, the league has been wrapped up and a number of fans are not too fussed about results. You can see Calderon rotating and players playing with less intensity, but this is more than justified given the league has been wrapped up for weeks. It was good not to end the season on a defeat, although that is twice in three games that Kitchee have conceded late equalisers. Fans were happy to see young players given a chance, with three teenagers starting in the league for Kitchee for the first time in the Hong Kong Premier League era. Teenagers this season played over 1200 minutes in all competitions, and in the previous two seasons Tuscany Shek vs HKU23 in February 2024 was the only teenager to start a league game. All three played well, and along with Chan Shing-chun (who started the last two games) Kitchee have some bright prospects for the future. 

Other news

Photo by HKFA

Kitchee U22 are through to the final of the U22 FA Cup, after two Slattery goals helped to see off Eastern District (coached by former Kitchee captain Helio). The final will be on the 25th May at 8pm at Kowloon Bay Park against HKFC, and after league wins for the first team, the U18s and the U16s it gives Kitchee another chance at silverware. 

Hong Kong will take on Mongolia at Hong Kong Stadium (5th) and Cambodia away (9th) in the June international window, with Bear, Haddow, Jason Kam, Beattie, Tan Chun-lok, Juninho and Jordan Lam included in the preliminary squad. The HKFC Soccer Sevens is next weekend, with Kitchee's women's and academy sides taking part, as well as some ex Kitchee players, and members of Kitchee's coaching staff are also participating, including Inigo Calderon. 

With the end of the season comes transfer speculation both in and out of the club. Wang Zhenpeng announced on Saturday that he will leave after over twenty years at the club. In his time he played nearly 400 games, and won over thirty trophies, including ten league titles. During his time at Kitchee, he shared the pitch with nearly two hundred teammates (according to transfermarkt), which doesn't include all the other goalkeepers in the squad over the years. Law Tsz-chun will join ambitious promoted club Supreme, coached by Kitchee legend Lo Kwan Yee. Dantas will also leave after two seasons.

Photo by HKFA

Lee Man and Hong Kong duo Everton Camargo and Dudu are on their way to the club, with more signings presumably being confirmed over the coming months. We'll continue to keep fans in the loop of incomings and outgoings, with Kitchee typically announcing a released list towards the end of May. Chairman Ken Ng shut down the rumours of Edinson Cavani signing, although given he's still under contract with Boca Juniors, it was a very unlikely rumour to begin with.

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Match highlights

Kitchee stagger towards the end of the season- North District 2 Kitchee 2 and Tai Po 3 Kitchee 0

Match summaries

Photo by Scoop

Kitchee continued their post-champions slump by giving up a 2-0 lead to North District and losing 3-0 to Tai Po. Against North District, first half penalties from Leandro and Junior were pegged back by a penalty from top scorer Samuel Granada and a stoppage timelong shot from Law Hiu-chung. A week later Kitchee returned to Tai Po, and were defeated 3-0 by the usual tenants; an early first half brace from Patrick Valverde and a free kick from Kitchee legend Fernando condemned Kitchee to their first game without a goal since the penultimate game of last season, and Kitchee's three game winless run is the longest since January 2025, albeit with the league wrapped up weeks ago fans are not too disheartened.

North District 2 Kitchee 2

Team news

Photo by Scoop

Roger Riera and Asier Illarramendi were out injured, with Jay Haddow, Kendy and Tan Chun-lok all suspended for yellow card accumulation. Ruslan Mingazow and Callum Beattie both came onto the bench, along with seventeen year old Poon Wing-kei. Juninho captained the side from the start for the first time, having taken the armband at half time the week before. Tun Thurain made his league debut off the bench.

Bear; Ari, Dantas, Jason, Jordan (Beattie 89); Kanda (Thurain 72), Chan Shing-chun (Li Siu-hin 72), Leandro (Mingazow 82); Merquelanz, Adrian, Juninho (c) (Anson 72)

Unused subs: Wang, Law, Lung, Buddle, Slattery, Liang Kui-chung, Poon Wing-kei

Match events

Photo by Scoop

Leandro went close early on, before Dantas was outmuscled by Granada, who fired wide. Granada missed another good chance, before Paez hit a long range freekick wide. Kitchee grew into the game in the closing stages of the half, with Leandro scoring a penalty after being fouled, and captain for the day Juninho doing the same moments later. In between, youngster Chan Shing-chun went close from outside the box.

Just after half time Arboleda was taken out by Bear, and Granada converted the penalty, before Adrian hit the bar with a header. North District continued to push; Weverton forced two good saves from Bear, while Granada missed a sitter and had two goals ruled out for offside. In stoppage time good holdup play by Granada (with some shouts for handball) saw the ball make its way out to Law Hiu-chung, whose shot found the net and gave North District a point.

Fan feedback

Photo by Scoop

Kitchee had a number of absentees, and started two teenagers in a league game for the first time since May 2019. It was a better performance than the week before, but yet again Kitchee were not clinical enough, with Adrian's header the only chance of note in the second half. There was a bit of a disconnect between defence and attack, although with the caveat of midfield duo Tan Chun-lok and Asier Illarramendi missing- the first game without either starting since September. There were a lot of minutes for fringe players, with Anson Wong, Li Siu-hin and league debutant Tun Thurain getting around twenty minutes off the bench.

Tai Po 3 Kitchee 0

Jordan Lam and Ruslan Mingazow were both suspended, with Roger Riera and Asier Illarramendi still injured, who were joined on the injury list by Kendy and Thurain Tun. Jay Haddow and Tan Chun-lok returned from suspension to start. Chan Shing-chun earned a second successive start.

Bear; Dantas, Jason, Haddow; Ari (Beattie 63), Lok (c), Chan Shing-chun (Li Siu-hin 63), Merquelanz (Anson 63); Kanda (Lung 63), Juninho (Leandro 63); Adrian

Unused subs: Wang, Law, Enikar, Buddle, Slattery, Poon Wing-kei

Match events

Photo by David

Valverde scored a nice first time shot from the edge of the box in the third minute, after good work down the left by Igor, with Kitchee failing to track him. He doubled the lead ten minutes later, evading Kitchee's defence to head in Fernando's cross. Juninho and Tan Chun-lok went close, before Bear saved a cross with his legs. Adrian Revilla blasted over from close range as Kitchee went in 2-0 down at half time.

Kanda picked Fernando's pocket, but his shot was blocked. Ari's great cross was headed wide by Juninho as Kitchee sought a way back. Bear saved from Philip Chan, before Fernando scored a freekick from out wide that bounced low; in between these two incidents Kitchee made a rare quintuple substitution. Adrian scuffed a shot sideways, and Kitchee fell to a 3-0 defeat.

Fan feedback

Photo by David

Fans aren't too bothered with another defeat, as players achieved the main goal of winning the title, and with absences and rotations different combinations are being tested. But some of the attack is far too static and Kitchee had very limited chances. The quintuple substitution gave nearly half an hour to fringe players, but still Law Tsz-chun and Matthew Slattery did not feature. Conceding two goals early put Kitchee on the back foot, and they never really looked like getting back into the game. Adrian Revilla is looking shattered up front, and still spends far too much time outside of the box. Anson Wong and Li Siu-hin added some energy, but Kitchee succumbed to a heavy defeat without much attacking threat.

What's next

Photo by David

One game left. We take on Eastern on the 17th May at 6pm at Tseung Kwan O to wrap up a league-winning season. The players will be presented with the trophy at this game, so get yourselves down to celebrate.

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North District highlights

Tai Po highlights

Invincible season dreams crushed as Kitchee blown away- Kitchee 1 Lee Man 4

Match summary

Kitchee lost in the league for the first time this season as a destructive first half from Lee Man saw Kitchee trail 3-0 after nineteen minutes. Kitchee improved somewhat as the game went on but eventually succombed to a 4-1 defeat, with Martin Merquelanz scoring his first Kitchee goal. This marked Kitchee's worst defeat at Mong Kok Stadium for over fifteen years.

Team news

Callum Beattie and Roger Riera were out injured, with Ruslan Mingazow rested. Adrian Revilla, Jay Haddow, Kendy and Ari Lam came into the starting line up, with Haddow lining up on the left of a back three.

Bear; Dantas, Jason, Haddow (Jordan 24); Ari (Buddle 75), Lok (c) (Juninho 46), Illarramendi, Merquelanz; Kendy (Chan Shing-chun 75); Adrian, Leandro (Kanda 57)

Unused subs: Wang, Law, Lung, Anson, Slattery, Li Siu-hin

Match events

Everton gave Lee Man the lead after 6 minutes, with Dantas beaten for pace by Baffoe just like in the League Cup final to set up Everton. Just over ten minutes later, sloppy play from Leandro in midfield saw the ball turned over, and a long ball forward from Gaucho found Baffoe who doubled the lead. Less than two minutes after this, Dantas could not complete a pass to Ari Lam, and Tachibana intercepted and played in Baffoe, whose pace destroyed Dantas and Baffoe found Everton free in the box to make it 3-0 before the 20th minute. The cautioned Jay Haddow was then sacrificed, with Jordan Lam coming on and Kitchee reverting to a back four. Just after the half hour mark Kitchee earned a slightly fortunate penalty, with Leandro pulled down by Wu Chun-ming. This penalty was converted by Martin Merquelanz, for his first Kitchee goal to pull one back. But Lee Man's dominance continued, with Everton and Gigauri both going close as Kitchee were all over the place.

Captain Tan Chun-lok, who was also booked in the first half, was withdrawn at half time, with Juninho replacing him. He added some energy to Kitchee's attack, almost scoring within a couple of minutes of coming on. Adrian couldn't quite divert a header in, and Dudu cleared inside the six yard box, as Kitchee looked more likely to score. But in the closing stages Merquelanz gave away a silly freekick for handball, not realising the ball was still live, and Dudu headed in. Juninho had one last effort to score, as he headed wide.

Fan feedback

Fans were largely disappointed to lose the prospect of going invincible, although with the league already confirmed none were overly upset. It was natural that the side were going to reduce the intensity, and Calderon did give minutes to fringe players at the end. But the mistakes of the League Cup were repeated here, with Dantas proving far too slow, and the back three being outplayed by the pace and power of Everton and Noah Baffoe. As we said in our report following the League Cup, this needs addressing in the summer. Even with Jason Kam's pace returning to the backline, there were still issues. Although as Calderon said post-match, this team are champions for a reason.

Yet again Lee Man's decision to go for three centre backs challenged Kitchee, as a team so reliant on crossing this season struggled to get much going. The penalty was fortunate, and a lot of Kitchee's time on the ball was not in attacking areas. Kitchee also picked up six yellow cards to Lee Man's one, although some of the decisions left a fair bit to be desired. That being said, it would be lazy to blame the officiating for Kitchee's defeat. With the invincible season out of reach maybe we see more fringe players used- Saturday saw Chan Shing-chun and Seb Buddle both have decent cameos as the game was already lost.

What's next

North District next Saturday, 3pm in Tai Po. The Championship group seems to have been designed with no clear structure, with teams having a random assortment of home, away and neutral fixtures- after this Kitchee play Tai Po in Tai Po and then Eastern at TKO. We anticipate Riera and Beattie to remain out, probably until the end of the season, and we believe Kitchee have a few players suspended for yellow card accumulation, but will wait for confirmation. Hopefully the boys can bounce back with a win.

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Highlights