HONG KONG FOOTBALL CHIEFS ASKED EX-COACH ANDERSEN TO HELP SOLVE MATCH-FIXING

• Former Hong Kong boss urges old employers to get on with hiring his replacement, around 20 coaches tell Andersen they are keen to succeed him

Jorn Andersen has revealed Hong Kong football chiefs asked him to watch videos of games in the city to see if he could spot instances of match fixing.

The Norwegian's resignation last month coincided with the city's Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) arresting 12 local players and managers suspected of match-fixing and illegal betting.

Andersen said the latest scandal, which followed the arrest of 23 people on similar charges in May 2023, "had no influence on my decision ... but I am very angry about it".

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Last week, the ICAC said it had charged three people, including a head coach and a player from two Hong Kong Premier League football teams, in connection with the scandal.

And the 61-year-old Andersen revealed that around eight months ago, the Football Association of Hong Kong, China (HKFA) asked him to study video footage of lower-league games they suspected were rigged.

"I tried to help them, but I have no experience of that," Andersen told the Post. "I couldn't tell if a game was bought or sold. I will only see the best in a player, not the bad things.

"I stopped it very early. I didn't want to spend my energy on it. I said, 'you have to find other people to help you'."

Having helped Hong Kong reach a first Asian Cup finals in more than 50 years, Andersen quit to take charge of China League One leaders Yunnan Yukun, a move he acknowledged was "a big risk".

But it took the HKFA nearly three weeks to advertise for his replacement, and Andersen, who was appointed in December 2021, six months after first applying for the role, said the governing body needed to speed up the process.

According to the Norwegian, around 20 European coaches have contacted him to ask if he would pass on their credentials to the governing body.

"I said I couldn't help, because you have to apply," Andersen said. "In countries like Korea and China, they look for their coach. The HKFA [recruit] in a very complicated way ... it takes too long.

"Hong Kong cannot take four or five months to appoint a new head coach. They have to find a new way: find the person [they want], and offer them the job."

Andersen supported the appointment of his former assistant, Wolfgang Luisser, for June matches against Iran and Turkmenistan.

"He is not the same person as me, but he knows how I wanted to play, the players I preferred, and that I liked to improve young players," Andersen said.

"I heard he will lead the team in September [for two friendlies], which is good. I think he can follow what I did."

Andersen advised the HKFA to "listen a lot" to John Morling, the Englishman who was appointed technical director in March. "He is a very important person for Hong Kong," Andersen said.

"He supported the representative team much more than others before him. Hong Kong is lucky to have him, we talked a lot and shared ideas. I hope he can improve Hong Kong football."

Andersen's Hong Kong reign was occasionally complicated by naturalised players opting out of overseas trips. In 2022, Helio Goncalves withdrew from Asian Cup qualifiers in India. More recently, Everton Camargo said he did not want to go to Turkmenistan.

"Player withdrawals disappointed me, it's difficult to speak against [players] when they say they have family issues ... but it's not easy to handle, because I'm not used to it," Andersen said.

"I had the feeling, sometimes, being nominated for Hong Kong was more special for local players than passport players. I have nothing against [naturalised] players, when they were with me, they gave everything. Sometimes, though, I felt players were not as professional as I was used to in Europe."

Andersen's exit for the Chinese second tier led some observers to suggest he must have been straining to escape the HKFA's employment.

He insisted that "was not the case", and acknowledged the association "worked very hard" to tie him to a new three-year deal.

"It was financially better, and they promised some things I wanted, so we could be more professional," Andersen said. "I would only have left for the perfect offer. I had chances with interesting clubs and national teams, before and after the Asian Cup, but there was always something disturbing me.

"Yunnan's offer was very good, not only financially. The club is very professional. We have eight training fields, a hotel where the players live, and a big gym.

"It's a big risk [taking over league leaders], but I studied the team, it has big possibilities."

Andersen moulded an aggressive, fearless Hong Kong from a limited player pool, largely drawn from the local league, and lower divisions overseas.

He wants the HKFA to provide incentives for eligible "quality players from higher leagues", such as the 20-year-old pair of Kian Fitz-jim, from Ajax, and Aaron Keller, who plays in Germany, to declare for Hong Kong.

In the meantime, he was "happy and proud" that a succession of Hong Kong talents who thrived under his leadership have secured mainland transfers.

Andersen added: "Those players will train at a higher level every day, so Hong Kong will benefit."

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This article originally appeared on the South China Morning Post (www.scmp.com), the leading news media reporting on China and Asia.

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2024-06-30T07:29:07Z dg43tfdfdgfd