Hong Kong, China (as is the official football name), has long tried to follow the advice of Han Solo in Return of the Jedi: keeping their distance from China while trying not to look like they are keeping their distance. It is all about maintaining an independent football association and the trappings and privilege that come with it. There was some talk a few years ago about getting a Hong Kong team in the Chinese Super League, when the spending was in full flow, and although that did not happen the local Premier League has belatedly got in on the act – kind of.
This glittering city is not known as a football hotbed but has a long history in the sport that started when it was a British colony and has continued since it became a special administrative region of China in 1997. George Best, Peter Shilton, Arie Haan, Bobby Moore, Diego Forlán, Nicky Butt, René van de Kerkhof, Tony Morley, Gordon McQueen and Craig Foster have played in the territory and soon David Silva will too.
