BUNDESLIGA BECKONS FOR HONG KONG TEENAGER
Former Kitchee prospect Michael Udebuluzor pressing to make debut with FC Ingolstadt in Germany’s third tier, with his sights set on higher honours
Hong Kong teenager Michael Udebuluzor has his sights set on the Bundesliga after signing for German side FC Ingolstadt.
The former Kitchee prospect has spent the past four years working his way through the ranks of German football, studying and training at the famed football academy DFI.
Before his 18th birthday on April 1, Udebuluzor was fielding offers from the likes of RB Salzburg, Leverkusen and 1860 Munich. But he has settled on Ingolstadt, in Germany’s second tier – although they will play in the third division next season after being relegated.
Udebuluzor, who has been playing as an attacking midfielder and forward in the club’s under17 and under-19 teams, will be pressing his claim for a first-team debut sooner rather than later.
Born in Hong Kong, Udebuluzor has made sacrifices, leaving his home city behind to take the next step in his career. “It was not easy,” the teenager said. “It was cold, I didn’t speak the language and my family was far away. But I could train the whole day and got every support I needed for my football career.”
Udebuluzor began playing football “as soon as he knew how to walk”, according to his former coach James Nortey, who nurtures talent at training programme Trainext.
“This is exciting news for everyone,” Nortey said. “In Germany, future football stars come through a totally different system of support and sports education.”
Udebuluzor is following in the footsteps of his father Cornelius, who moved to Hong Kong from his native Nigeria and won representative honours in his adopted city.
In 2001, he helped Hong Kong to beat Paraguay in the Carlsberg Cup and appeared in a pre-World Cup tournament in 2002, playing against Scotland. The following season, he won a Hong Kong FA Cup winner’s medal with Sun Hei, as well as helping them to reach the League Cup final.
Nortey has high hopes of seeing more young players from Hong Kong take the path Udebuluzor has chosen and try to make the grade in Europe, with several of them having had discussions with clubs there.
“All they need is the right mentorship and guidance to be able to pursue a professional career,” Nortey said. “If young players in Hong Kong train hard and stay focused, there will be more players able to make it at the highest level.”
Kitchee’s director of football Alex Chu Chi-kwong, who also oversees the club’s youth operations, said that his club had a strong track record of developing young players.
“Many talented players get their start with Kitchee before they move to overseas clubs,” Chu said.
They include Jay Haddow, the 18-year-old Blackburn Rovers full back, who was born in Hong Kong and was initially with Kitchee’s academy before being spotted by the English Championship club.
Historically, the German league has featured more Asian players than any other top European competition.
Many talented players get their start with Kitchee before they move to overseas clubs
ALEX CHU, KITCHEE FOOTBALL DIRECTOR