Football chief backs ‘obsessive winner’ Ashley Westwood to lead Hong Kong resurgence
HKFA technical director John Morling says the Englishman has won over supporters, and is eyeing city team’s best run for almost 40 years
Technical director John Morling said “obsessive winner” Ashley Westwood was proving himself the right choice as Hong Kong head coach.
Appointed in August, Westwood had a rocky start when he lashed out at critical supporters following October’s 1-0 defeat in Liechtenstein.
That followed controversy around a team night out in Fiji the previous month, while some fans were unhappy over Westwood’s trips to Australia, where his partner is based, between international breaks.
However, fears the Englishman would accumulate more frequent flyer points than ranking points during his tenure have been quashed.
Hong Kong recovered from their Liechtenstein setback to beat Cambodia 3-0, and this month were particularly impressive in a 3-1 victory over the Philippines, before overcoming Mauritius 1-0 for a third successive win.
The team climbed two places to world No 156 in the latest Fifa rankings, released this week, ahead of next month’s home East Asian Football Federation Championship (EAFF) qualifying tournament.
