Kitchee Camp Roaring to Go, Ready to Defend League

Rounding into form just in time, Kitchee is set to face old nemesis South China in the League Cup final on Saturday afternoon. The match will take place in Mongkok Stadium and kick-off time will be 3:00pm. Kitchee and South China have actually met each other earlier in this season’s League Cup group stage, with Kitchee edging the Caroliners through a 2:1 victory, eventually crowning Group A in all-conquering fashion. Kitchee then took on Eastern in the semi-final and dully crushed the opponent in a commanding 6:1 win, punching its ticket for the League Cup final. While the Blues might be a slight shadow of its old self during the current season, Kitchee’s sparkling form in the League Cup cannot be denied. With arch-rival South China now standing between Kitchee and the League Cup trophy, all eyes will be out to see whether Blues can go ahead and successfully defend its League Cup crown. Captain Lo Kwan-yee indicates the Kitchee troops are high in spirits and are ready to defend the League Cup title. “We are in very good form at the moment and the team morale is off the charts. Winning against Eastern in such a spectacular fashion in the semi-final has injected great confidence into our team,” said the Kitchee leader. “South China has (Chan) Siu-ki returning from injuries to go with their quality strike force, making them a force to be reckoned with. However, Kitchee and South China are arch-rivals and therefore everyone in the Kitchee camp will be up for this game, hoping to defeat the Caroliners and successfully retaining the League Cup trophy.” Midfield dynamo Huang Yang is confident that the team can defend the League Cup under the current head coaching duo of Alex Chu (Kitchee’s director of football) and Roberto Losada (Kitchee assistant coach). “Ever since coach Chu and “Chino” took over the coaching duties, the mood in the camp seems to have improved. The two coaches have given players freedom to express themselves on the pitch and therefore we are all confident in coming out on top in the final under their guidance,” claimed the Hong Kong international. “With the head-to-head record between Kitchee and South China this season, I think Kitchee players will enjoy a slight psychological advantage and to go with our ever-improving form, I certainly look forward to us playing up to our potential on match day and returning home with a victory.”