HK champs Kitchee overcome Terengganu in AFC Cup
KUALA TERENGGANU: Hong Kong champions Kitchee scored a goal in each half to beat hosts Terengganu 2-0 in their AFC Cup Group F match at the Sultan Ismail Stadium.
Jorge Torres opened the scoring in the 44th minute by calmly collecting a cross from Lam Kawaito slotpast Turtles goalkeeper Shamirza Yusof.
The visitors sealed victory when Chu Siu Kei collected a through pass from Lo Chi Kwan before unleashing a powerful shot in the 74th minute.
Terengganu controlled the game but missed a host of chances with strikers Francis Forkey Doe and Abdul Manaf Mamat the main culprits.
Coach Mat Zan Mat Aris was clearly disappointed with the result as “we had a lot of possession”.
“We could have scored three or four goals but our finishing let us down. Our build-up play was superb but we lacked the killer finish,” he said.
He conceded that the players were not focused, resulting in them losing the ball often.
“We conceded two soft goals as our defence let us down today,” he said.
Kitchee coach Josep Gumbao was delighted with the unexpected win.
“It was a close game but we became more confident after the first goal. It was the turning point of the match,” he said.
Gumbao praised his players for sticking to the game plan.
“It’s a very good result. We hope to go far in this competition,” he said.