Ng Wai Chiu

Hong Kong footballer

Ng Wai Chiu (born 22 October 1981 in Hong Kong) is a former Hong Kong professional footballer. He was capped for Hong Kong at various youth levels, as well as the senior national team. He is currently the assistant manager of Chinese Super League club Dalian Professional.

Ng Wai Chiu's father Ng Chi Ying was also a footballer for Guangdong. At the age of 7, Ng Wai Chiu moved from Kowloon Bay to Shatin's Hin Keng Estate. He then started playing football in the football field below his building. He began to challenge his father's football skills when he was 15 but lost every time. He joined the Hong Kong Sports Institute in the same year and met his Hong Kong defence partner Chan Wai Ho there for the first time.

Ng spent time learning his trade at various clubs, including a short spell in England when he was an apprentice with Huddersfield Town and Southampton side. Unsatisfied with the Hong Kong League, Ng moved to Mainland to further develop his football ability. After gradually working his way up from the lower divisions in Mainland, he signed for Nanjing Yoyo in the Chinese Jia League on 15 February 2004, before moving to Shanghai Zobon in the Chinese Super League in 2005.

In 2005, Ng Wai Chiu was a regular starter for newly promoted club Shanghai Zobon under coach Ma Liangxing. He played 23 matches for Zobon and scored 1 goal. The club finished 11th in the 14 team league. He was named as a member of the Shanghai United team to face Primera Liga outfits Villarreal CF and Sevilla.

Near the end of the 2006 Chinese Super League season, Ng Wai Chiu was selected as a member of the CSL All Stars. With Ng and Li Wei Feng in central defence, Shenhua only conceded 18 goals, the second best record in the league. On 21 December, the club and the player announced an extension to their contract.

Ng played for the Chinese Super League club Hangzhou Greentown, and is the first professional player from Hong Kong to be in the Chinese Super League. In the 2010–11 season, he was plagued by injuries to his knee and missed many matches with Hangzhou Greentown as well as the Hong Kong national football team.

Ng Wai Chiu return to Hong Kong and joined South China on 22 January 2011. But his knee injury persisted and he did not play until April. On 16 April, he played 13 minutes as a substitute as South China beat Rangers (HKG) 3:1. On 3 May, in the 2011 AFC Cup, Ng Wai Chiu came on as a substitute in the away game against Persipura Jayapura and scored with a header with 4 minutes remaining. But it was to no avail as South China lost 4:2 and was dumped out of the tournament.

Ng Wai Chiu joined TSW Pegasus in January 2012 to get more playing opportunities. He made his debut on 4 February 2012 at home against Sham Shui Po and scored a goal to help his new club seal a 3–0 victory.

Ng Wai Chiu joined Tianjin Songjiang for an undisclosed fee on 25 December 2012. He was the captain of Tianjin Songjiang in the 2012–13 season.

Ng played his final two seasons at Eastern. He announced his retirement from playing on 19 June 2018 in order to transition to coaching.

Ng Wai Chiu played for Hong Kong against Japan in the 2011 AFC Asian Cup qualification match in Hong Kong, but Hong Kong lost 0:4. Ng Wai Chiu also played in the 2010 East Asian Football Championship where Hong Kong lost all 3 of its matches and finished last. Ng Wai Chiu was optimistic he would be able to play for Hong Kong in the 2014 FIFA World Cup Asian qualification matches. But in the end he missed the 2014 FIFA World Cup Asian qualification matches against Saudi Arabia due to his poor form. On 30 September 2011, Ng Wai Chiu was sent off in the 3:3 draw with the Philippines in the 2011 Long Teng Cup. On 1 January 2012, Ng Wai Chiu captained Hong Kong to victory over Guangdong in the 2012 Guangdong Hong Kong Cup when Hong Kong won the cup on penalties. On 18 September 2012, Ng decided to quit international football.

Ng Wai Chiu's uncle is Hong Kong actor Francis Ng. Francis Ng wrote the foreword for Ng Wai Chiu's autobiography Winning Over Myself (贏自己). He also has a sister, two years younger. Ng Wai Chiu has been married since 2008. He first met his wife, Zhang Huiting, in 2005 when he worked for Shanghai Zhongbang, and later registered his marriage in Hong Kong. However, he has enjoyed affairs with other women during his marriage, including most recently with a married woman.