科蘭後備登場 傑志主場2:2迫和冠忠南區

After bolstering the squad significantly in the January transfer window, Kitchee went on to make its 2018 premier league debut on Sunday afternoon at home against Kwoon Chung Southern. Despite trailing by two goals at one point, goals from Alessandro Leonardo and Jared Lum helped Kitchee secured a precious league point, as the two competing sides shook hands on a thrilling 2:2 draw. Kitchee started the game with high-profile January signing Diego Forlan on the bench. However, that did not stop the Blues from throwing everything that they have against the visiting Kwoon Chung Southern. Alexander Akande came close to opening the score for Kitchee but his close-range shot ended up hitting the crossbar. Kwoon Chung Southern then capitalized on Kitchee’s misfortune and opened the score through a counter-attack, as Fernando Recio accidentally directed a cross into his own net. Late in the first-half, Marcos Jimenez converted a teammate’s delivery and blasted the ball home, expanding the visitors’ lead. Right before half-time, Jared Lum tried to pull one back for Kitchee but saw his smoothly-taken free-kick denied by a great save from Kwoon Chung Southern keeper Li Yat-chun. Kitchee wasted no time in the second-half and pulled closer through a finely-taken Alessandro Leonardo header. Afterwards, Lucas Da Silva nearly tied the game for the Blues but saw his header hit the crossbar and stayed out of the net. Shortly afterwards, the strapping Brazilian forward took aim from the top of the box but saw his strike acrobatically pushed away by Li Yat-chun. Kitchee finally drew level on the 66th minute, as Jared Lum unleashed a cracking free-kick that found the back of the net. Late in the game, Alexander Akande let rip from the edge of the box but was once again denied by Li Yat-chun. Kitchee skipper Huang Yang acknowledges the Blues will need to learn from its mistake and can ill-afford to commit the same errors in the future. “The two goals that we conceded are totally on us and they are both avoidable. Thankfully, the team did not fold, regained its composure in the second-half and recaptured its form,” offered the midfield battler. “From a result-perspective, this is an acceptable outcome but we will need to review certain things and apply rectifications before our upcoming game against Eastern Long Lions.” Attacker Fernando Pedreira believes Kitchee created lots of scoring chances throughout the game and it was only luck that prevented the Blues from picking up all three points from the encounter. “The team played quite well in the first-half but the opponent capitalized on its two scoring chances and scored,” Pedreira reflected. “However, we kept the pressure coming in the second-half and finally managed to draw level. Despite not starting the new year with a win, this is part of football and as long as the team can keep up with its normal high standard and spirits, there is nothing that Kitchee fans should be overly concerned about.”