From Lionel Messi fiasco to penalty shoot-out agony for Hong Kong – but key stars skip Guangzhou tie
- Players who faced Inter Miami and starred in Asian Cup lose their Guangdong-Hong Kong Cup second leg after coach Jorn Andersen forced to pick makeshift team
- Guangdong draw level on aggregate in mainland China, then win shoot-out, scoring all four of their spot kicks and finishing with a ‘Panenka’
A makeshift Hong Kong team suffered penalty shoot-out disappointment against a Guangdong XI last night, after their two-goal first-leg advantage was wiped out inside 67 minutes at a sodden Yuexiushan Stadium in Guangzhou.
Guangdong scored all four of their kicks, following a 3-1 victory on the night, and finished with a flourish when Liao Junjian floated a fabulous “Panenka” kick into the middle of the goal to win the 42nd edition of the Guangdong-Hong Kong Cup.
Paco Chan Hoi-pak smacked the post with Hong Kong’s first penalty, and after 17-year-old Eastern forward Ng Yu-hei nervelessly found the bottom corner, Guangdong keeper Cheng Yuelei saved Yip Cheuk-man’s effort.
Hong Kong will rue their failure to add to the two goals they scored at a rocking Mong Kok Stadium last week, as much as anything that happened last night.
Guangdong looked shell-shocked in the face of Hong Kong’s pace, hunger and aggression in the opening match.
