China and Hong Kong will continue a long soccer history together after being drawn in the same Asian qualifying group for the 2006 World Cup finals in Germany.
Hong Kong and China, drawn in Group 4 with Malaysia and Kuwait, have met 10 times in international play. China has won five times, while Hong Kong has only one victory over China to its credit. Co-hosts of the 2002 finals, Japan and South Korea, got relatively easy groups.
"This is incredible. How can China play Hong Kong? Hong Kong is China. They are the same country," said Serbian-born Bora Milutinovic, who became something of a national hero last year after he led China to its first World Cup finals but now coaches Honduras.
Capitalist Hong Kong maintains some autonomy from China under a policy called "one country, two systems," which extends to football.
The Chinese have won the last three times the two have met.
Their World Cup rivalry dates back to the 1980s, when Hong Kong had the upper hand, winning their last contest 2-1 in preliminary competition.
Hong Kong was returned to China from Britain in 1997 but has a separate government system.
"That aside, the danger in the group for China is Hong Kong," said Milutinovic, who was replaced by Dutchman Arie Haan as China's coach a year ago.
"Hong Kong beat China in World Cup preliminaries the last time ... Kuwait will also be very difficult. In Chinese philosophy patience is very important. Sometimes the Chinese players lose that.
"China is my sentimental favorite, of course. They have an excellent coach and good young players. I think they will make it through to the World Cup finals."
Coaches from China, Hong Kong, Japan and South Korea were absent from the high-profile draw because of the current East Asian Football Championship in Japan.
Japan, looking to make its third World Cup appearance, was drawn in Group 3 with Oman, India and Singapore.
South Korea, which has competed at six previous World Cup finals, drew Lebanon, Vietnam and Maldives in Group 7.
"Our group is very balanced," said Junji Ogura, vice president of the Japanese Football Association. "This will be good experience for the next stage because the team will travel a lot. Oman is in West Asia, India is in South Asia and Singapore is in Southeast Asia.
"India will be tough. They finished second in a recent Afro-Asian competition so they are in good condition now. Singapore is getting stronger and stronger with a lot of imported foreign players. But Japan can win this group."
Rivals Japan and South Korea co-hosted last year's World Cup, which meant they didn't need to qualify. This time, the two nations join 30 other Asian hopefuls vying for a handful of slots available to the confederation at the 2006 finals.
The Asian draw divided the region's 32 sides into eight groups of four teams. At least four slots are set aside for Asian teams at the finals. There is also another so-called half-slot up for grabs, an extra berth they can fight over with CONCACAF.
At the 2002 World Cup, Japan reached the second round for the first time while South Korea became the first Asian team to reach the semifinals, upsetting Spain and Italy on the way.
A total of 39 Asian countries applied to compete at the soccer showcase event.
The top 25 Asian nations, including powerhouses Japan and South Korea, were guaranteed a berth in the qualifying round.
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