Oliver Gerbig has his eyes on next year’s AFC Asian Cup finals after earning a spot in Hong Kong’s squad for the start of the city’s World Cup qualifying campaign.
“I spoke to the coach this summer, and he told me to keep going and keep improving, to be patient, and when the time came he would call me – and I guess the time is now,” Gerbig said.
“It was pretty disappointing last season, making preliminary squads, but never the final cut,” he said. “I thought I was playing well … but it is up to the coach. I kept working and used it as motivation.
“The Asian Cup doesn’t come round often for Hong Kong, although we want to make it normal to qualify for big tournaments. I have been given my chance and am trying to convince the coach my name should be on that list.”
Gerbig, who can play in central defence or at right-back, had previously been part of Under-20 and Under-23 squads, but was told he had slipped down the pecking order because “I was not playing professionally”.
His desire to make football a career prompted his return from the US, where he studied for a degree in business commerce.
“That was a big factor when I talked to Kitchee,” he said. “Where better to play to try to make the Hong Kong side, than in front of the national team coaches every week?
“At university, you have regular matches for three months of the year, so playing every week for a whole season took a lot of adjustment. Kitchee gave me their full trust, which was amazing.”
Andersen has criticised the quality of the city’s domestic football, while goalkeeper Tse Ka-wing, a star of Hong Kong’s run to the Asian Games semi-finals, questioned whether the Premier League had improved since the national team’s 2009 East Asian Games triumph.
“I think the standard could definitely improve,” Gerbig said. “A large factor is the funding, some players are not completely professional, so cannot fully focus on football.
“And the standard of foreigners clubs are trying to attract is not of the same level as previously.”
“I have always wanted to test myself and play at the highest level possible,” Gerbig said. “I don’t want to get complacent or comfortable anywhere, because that is when you stop growing and improving.
“Kitchee gave me my start and I would never go in a way that leaves a bad taste. But I have aspirations to play in a bigger league, with more exposure. I am 24 and if I want to take the next step, it has to be soon.”
https://www.scmp.com/sport/football/article/3237520/fifa-world-cup-defender-gerbig-eager-seize-chance-after-leaving-us-hong-kong-dream