A SQUAD of ten Celtic players will fly to represent the club in this year’s Hong Kong Soccer Sevens tournament.
The Celtic side, which is led by reserve team coach Kenny McDowall and his assistant Danny McGrain, flies out on Tuesday afternoon (May 16) to take part in the annual seven-a-side tournament.
This year Celtic will face PSV Eindhoven, the Hong Kong FC first team and Chinese side, Shanghai Shooters in the group stages, with Australian champions Sydney Spirit, South Africa’s Kaiser Chiefs and English sides Aston Villa, Southampton, Manchester United and Arsenal among the other clubs taking part.
However this year’s competition could also see the Glasgow derby ‘transferred’ to Hong Kong, with Rangers facing Urawa Red Diamonds, Kitchee FC and KFC Tokyo in Group One.
As always, it is a young Celtic squad who have been selected to travel to Hong Kong, with the players looking to add to the invaluable experience that they have already picked up during their title-winning reserve and Under 19 campaigns.
Travelling this year are goalkeeper Sandy Wood, defender Paul Caddis, midfielders Theodore Bjarnason, Ross Harris and Mark Millar and forwards Nicky Riley, Kjartan Finnbogason, Michael Gardyne, Diarmuid O’Carroll and Paul McGowan.
The format of the tournament makes for an intense series of games, with Celtic playing all three of their group matches on the afternoon and evening of Saturday May 20.
The top two sides from each group will then go on to face each other in the knock-out stages on Sunday May 21.
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"Last night I nearly died,
But I woke up just in time".
Duke Special