Infantino doing ‘great job’ World Cup star Suker says, tells Hong Kong ‘be more like Croatia’

Soon after he joined the Hong Kong football association 2½ years ago, the now outgoing technical director John Morling pointed to the success of Croatia and asked, “why can’t that be us?”

With a population just shy of 4 million, Croatia have reached one World Cup final and two semi-finals in the past 28 years.

Now, Davor Suker, one of the stars of their 1998 run to the last four, is poised to share some of his country’s secrets with Hong Kong: population 7 million, world No 156 and as far away as ever from qualifying for a World Cup, even if it is expanded to 64 teams.

The former Real Madrid and Arsenal striker, who is a Fifa ambassador and leapt to the defence of president Gianni Infantino on Thursday, Suker has been made honorary president of Hong Kong Premier League club Eastern District.

While his appointment left a few people scratching their heads, Suker said he had grown friendly with Eric Fok Kai-shan and Timothy Fok Tsun-ting, the current and former chairmen of the Football Association of Hong Kong, China, over his nine years as head of the Croatian Football Federation.

During Suker’s tenure, which finished in 2021, his country reached the 2018 World Cup final.

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