China left frustrated after Hong Kong draw
China played out a 0-0 draw in their AFC Cup and World Cup qualification match against Hong Kong at the Shenzhen Bao'an Stadium.
China played out a 0-0 draw in their AFC Cup and World Cup qualification match against Hong Kong at the Shenzhen Bao'an Stadium.
The result leaves Hong Kong at the top of the standings in Group C with seven points while China are in second with four points, having played one match less than their rivals on the Thursday.
For the most part, China dominated possession throughout but were frustrated by the Hong Kong defence, who kept nine men behind the ball for the most part.
China captain Zheng Zhi carved open the first goal-scoring opportunity early on the match and hit the post from 25 yards shortly after the start.
Wu Xi was the next Chinese player to trouble Yapp Hung Fai in the HK goal when the midfielder hit a rasping shot from the left flank that went just wide of the left upright on 25 minutes.
Shortly after, the hosts were left wondering how they were still level after Wu Lei's shot was cleared off the line by Festus Baise, before Yu Dabao hit the right upright from 10 yards out.
The vistitors struggled to get out of their own half for most of the match and on 35 minutes JJ Kilma - a sixth minute substitute for Chan Wai Ho - cleared another shot off the line, after which the ball rebounded to Zheng Zhi, whose shot rocketed off the cross-bar.
After the half-time interval, Hong Kong continued to sit deep and Wu Lei was the next to come close to breaking the deadlock with a powerful effort from the edge of the box that forced Yapp to make a lovely save.
That was as close as China came to scoring for the rest of the match, as the resolute HK side - who offered precious little in attack - sat deeper and deeper in the closing moments.
Shenzen: Hong Kong’s impressive FIFA World Cup 2018 and AFC Asian Cup 2019 qualifying campaign continued on Thursday as they held China to a 0-0 draw, a result which sees them still on top of the Group C standings.
The result in China leaves Hong Kong leading the way with, following earlier wins against Bhutan and the Maldives, seven points from three games, while the Chinese are three points behind with a win and a draw to their name.
Alain Perrin’s China side will surely, however, be reflecting on what could have been following a game which they dominated for large periods.
Indeed, the tone for the game was set within the first 25 minutes when, with Hong Kong struggling to gain a foothold, China hit the post twice through 2013 AFC Player of the Year Zheng Zhi and Yu Hanchao.
Wu Xi then fizzed a shot narrowly wide of Hong Kong goalkeeper Yapp Hung-fai’s post, before Festus Baise cleared Wu Lei’s effort off the line and, with China in the ascendancy, Yu Dabao hit the Hong Kong upright.
Incredibly, the Hong Kong woodwork was rattled a fourth time, with Zheng’s effort coming back off the crossbar shortly before the break much to the frustration of the Chinese faithful.
Visiting striker Jaimes McKee had a claim for an early second half penalty waved away, while Zhang Linpeng fired narrowly wide and Yapp reacted superbly to repel Wu Lei’s screamer and Ren Hang’s powerful header as China. quarter-finalists at this year's AFC Asain Cup, desperately sought a breakthrough.
In the game’s last genuine opportunity, Yang Xu headed wide to leave China wondering just how they failed to garner all three points and Hong Kong sitting pretty at the top of the group.
China will now travel to face the Maldives next Tuesday, while Hong Kong are set to face Qatar at home on the same day.
The group winners and four best runners-up (total 12 teams) will advance to the 2019 AFC Asian Cup finals and the final round of qualifying for the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
The next best 24 teams from the preliminary stage of the joint qualifiers will compete in a separate competition for the remaining slots (12 slots or 11 slots + 1 slot for the host) in the 24-team 2019 Asian Cup.
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