A very objective view from China.
China failed to qualify for the tournament at the 2023 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup in Qatar. Drawn in a group with “hosts” Qatar, Lebanon, and Tajikistan, the Chinese were expected to advance to the round of 16, but the reality was that they were eliminated in the group stage with two losses, 텍사스홀덤 no goals, and a tie.
The dismal performance sparked outrage in China. According to Chinese media outlet Sohu.com, after the final group game against Qatar, Chinese fans took to social media to express their anger. “It’s like elementary school students taking a college entrance exam,” one fan wrote, poking fun at China’s low standards. “Three games and no goals. Where are the strikers? This is the Asian Cup, not the World Cup!” another responded.
Most arrows were pointed at head coach Aleksandar Jankovic, with Chinese outlet Sina Sports bitterly stating, “The whole team has no skills and no tactics, this is the worst national team in history.”
The outlet singled out three reasons for the poor performance, and Jankovic was one of them. “This is what we’ve been seeing since Jankovic took over the team,” said Sina Sports. His tactics can occasionally shine. But most of the time, it’s a disastrous process. Under Jankovic, the players don’t seem to have practiced at all how to pass the ball in groundball situations.”
The fans also criticized Jankovic. “No goals, no wins, worst squad reorganization ever. The coach should be fired,” “I don’t know if changing the coach will solve the problem, but he should be held accountable,” and “Jankovic should be fired. If a player’s level is 60, Jankovic’s level is 40,” and so on.
In the end, the Chinese national team chose to part ways with Jankovic. The team has since announced that they will finalize the appointment of their next head coach before the World Cup qualifiers. The next coach is likely to be a foreigner, such as Roberto Mancini.
In China, where people are quick to blame the coach, there is a very objective view. Chinese sports journalist Liu Wenchao said, “We shouldn’t think of South Korea and Japan as the same race. China is not comparable to the Korean and Japanese national soccer teams.”