On Monday, Hong Kong’s soccer team defeated China for the first time in nearly 30 years in a friendly match in Abu Dhabi.
Pun Puyhin continued to display his impressive scoring ability, scoring twice in the eight minutes just after half-time to give Jørn Andersen’s side a 2-1 victory at the Baniyas Stadium. Tang Long scored China’s first goal in the 9th minute.
The match was played as part of the Hong Kong national team’s preparations for the AFC Asian Cup, which will be held in Qatar later this month. They qualified for the continental finals for the first time since 1968.
It was Poon who scored the only goal in Hong Kong’s under-23s’ dramatic victory over continental giants Iran at the Asian Games in October, but the forward played in the United Arab Emirates capital. Once again he made a decisive contribution.
He came off the bench in the 51st minute to equalize, then turned the game around eight minutes later.
Although the match was an official FIFA match, both teams’ football associations chose to hold it behind closed doors and limit information about the match.
Still, Hong Kong fans will be celebrating their first victory over China in the now-defunct Dynasty Cup since 1995, when the Hong Kong side won on penalties.
We need to go back another 10 years. You have to go back to May 1985. The last time Hong Kong defeated China in an official match was their famous 2-1 victory in a World Cup qualifier in Beijing.
Monday marked a new step forward for Andersen’s Hong Kong side, and he praised his players for executing the aggressive style that Andersen encouraged them to adopt.
“They’re doing better,” he said. “There’s no need to motivate the team against China.”
The result was a timely boost for Hong Kong before they begin their Asian Cup campaign against the United Arab Emirates on January 14.