Kitchee returns to premier league battleground on

League-leading Kitchee will resume its premier league commitments on Saturday afternoon by facing South China at home. The match will take place in Mongkok Stadium and kick-off time is 5:30pm. The game will mark the 250th time that loyal club servant Lo Kwan-yee represents Kitchee, hence all Blues supporters are called to come out in droves to witness the captain reaching such impressive milestone. Despite the domestic football schedule taking a break from action for more than a week due to international friendlies, Kitchee did not go idle and actually went to Bangkok, Thailand for a high intensity friendly match against Thai Premier League side Bangkok United. Kitchee put on a terrific performance and defeated the home side in the friendly match, which should be a great boost to the players’ form and confidence. In terms of playing personnel, all the international players are back with Kitchee after representing Hong Kong on the international stage and it is expected that Kitchee should have all hands on deck this weekend when taking on South China. Midfield Maestro Fernando Pedreira, who scored two goals against Bangkok United in the recent friendly, believes a very tough game against South China lies ahead in the weekend. “Every game between Kitchee and South China seems like a derby game and I fully expect a highly competitive match,” offered the Brazilian. “Even though we are leading the premier league table, it will not be easy for us to maintain the top spot. Therefore we really need to keep turning out quality performances on the pitch. Hopefully, it will be enough to see us through against South China this weekend.” Defender Li Ngai-hoi, who represented Hong Kong in the Hong Kong-Macau Interport recently, hopes his side can keep up with the early season form and put one over South China. “The team has managed to string together a series of good results early this season because we have discovered good form early on and have stayed away from injuries,” Li explained. “Nikola Komazec has to be one of the more dangerous South China players at the moment. He likes to shoot the ball and will shoot from practically anywhere on the pitch. That is why we need to keep a close watch on him and try to neutralize his threat.”