Scolari to face young female coach in Asian Champions League

FILE - In this May 6, 2016 file photo, Hong Kong's Eastern Sports Club head coach Chan Yuen-ting laughs during a training session in Hong Kong. World Cup winning coach Luiz Felipe Scolari's first task in trying to take Guangzhou Evergrande to a third Asian Champions League will be to face a team coached by a 28 year-old woman. The draw has pitted the Chinese powerhouse against Hong Kong club Eastern F.C., whose coach Chan became the first woman to lead a men's team to a title in a professional top flight league when Eastern won the 2016 Hong Kong Premier League. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung, File) FILE - In this May 6, 2016 file photo, Hong Kong's Eastern Sports Club head coach Chan Yuen-ting laughs during a training session in Hong Kong. World Cup winning coach Luiz Felipe Scolari's first task in trying to take Guangzhou Evergrande to a third Asian Champions League will be to face a team coached by a 28 year-old woman. The draw has pitted the Chinese powerhouse against Hong Kong club Eastern F.C., whose coach Chan became the first woman to lead a men's team to a title in a professional top flight league when Eastern won the 2016 Hong Kong Premier League. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung, File)

By Associated Press December 15, 2016 4 min read

History-making coach Chan Yuen-ting says it will be her honor to match wits with World Cup-winning coach Luiz Felipe Scolari.

Their first meeting is scheduled for Feb. 22 in the Asian Champions League. It will be in Guangzhou, the southern China city just 75 miles (120 kilometers) from Hong Kong, in front of 40,000 fans, but expected to draw eyes from all over the world.

Chan and her Eastern side from Hong Kong will make their league debut against Scolari and his powerhouse Guangzhou Evergrande, a two-time league champion.

“I am happy to meet Scolari,” Chan said. “The Asian Champions League is a valuable opportunity for us to learn from opponents like Guangzhou and improve ourselves.”

The response is typical Chan. She has been grounded and gracious since she was appointed coach of Eastern a year ago, even as her profile, and Eastern’s, has magnified.