An article in the Tonight Newspaper today looks at the prospects for the Chinese men's soccer team in the 18-team Asian zone of the upcoming World Cup qualifying tournament, arguing that it would be more realistic to fight for a play-off spot.
World Qualifying Round (WQR)
The first round of the Asian Zone 18 tournament will be played on September 5, with the second round on September 10, followed by two rounds each in October and November. China is basically confirmed to participate in the draw as the fifth slot. The first six rounds of this year's tournament will be played against first, third, second, sixth and fourth-ranked teams, so the schedule will be difficult for the Chinese team first and then easy.
challenge
Extremely.
From a strength point of view, it is difficult for China to compete within the group for two direct places in the final round of the World Cup tournament, so it is more realistic to strive for the top four rankings in order to compete for a play-off place. For this reason, the Chinese team must perform as well as possible in the first three rounds of the tournament in order to be in the best shape and mindset to face their direct competitors.
The draw for the 18-team Asian qualifying tournament for the World Qualifiers will take place on the 27th of this month. In terms of time, China's coaching staff will only have two months to prepare for the first two rounds of matches in early September after the grouping situation is finalized. With the postponement of the East Asian Football Championship, which was originally scheduled to be played in July, the Chinese team can make use of the reserved slot to arrange flight training and actual practice. After the 24th round of the Chinese Super League, the team will gather again on August 25 to officially enter the pre-tournament sprint preparation phase.
From the overall performance of the Chinese team in the 36-team Asian qualifying round of the World Qualifying Tournament, the head coach Ivanovic and the international players still need to further integrate. At the same time, the excavation of available talent, adjust the tactical style of play, promote the naturalization of players and other aspects also need to spend a certain amount of time. This series of preparations will determine the performance of the Chinese team in the 18-team tournament and whether they can ultimately achieve the goal of competing for the play-off places. Fans are looking forward to the performance of the Chinese team and hope that the team will be able to show the best level in the field surrounded by strong opponents.
