 |
| 사진=소후닷컴 |
|
Even China's claim acknowledged the reality.
China lost 0-2 to Australia in the eighth Group C match of the third Asian qualifying round for the 2026 North-China World Cup at Hangzhou Olympic Sports Center Stadium in Hangzhou, China, at 8 p.m. on the 25th (Korea time). The defeat failed China to escape from the bottom of the group.
The home team China took the lead, but China's 'jab' did not work properly for Australia, which prepared 'counterpunch'. China's most serious problem in this game was the failure to crack down on mistakes. Australia's counterattack was sharp, but all the runs came from China's mistakes.
In the 16th minute of the first half, Jackson Irvine defended well when he hit the penalty box, but he failed to handle the ball properly, so he gave up a shot to Irvine and lost a point. In the second loss scene in the 29th minute of the first half, goalkeeper Wang Dalay was unable to hit the shot he was owed, which was ridiculous.
Goalkeeper Dalay acknowledged the reality of Chinese football in front of fans during an interview as captain after the game. According to Dongchu-di, a Chinese soccer media outlet, Chinese captain Dalay left a statement acknowledging the reality of Chinese soccer. Asked how he would improve his current three-game losing streak, Dalay said, `China is not a strong team, unlike South Korea and Japan. We have no choice but to do our best, but winning or losing depends on luck," he replied.
 |
| Sportschosun DB |
|
Even China's claim is tantamount to acknowledging the disastrous performance of Chinese soccer. As FIFA expanded the number of World Cup participants to 48 countries, the possibility of Asian countries entering the World Cup has greatly expanded. When FIFA made the decision to expand the World Cup participants, China was expected to benefit the most. Some even argued that FIFA's move was aimed at bringing China, which has a population of 1.5 billion, to the World Cup.
However, China only advanced to the third qualifying round after experiencing a crisis from the second qualifying round in Asia. The third qualifying round, in which the first and second place in each group are given a ticket to go directly to the World Cup, was not organized well in China. This is because Japan and Australia, which have a clear advantage in objective power, are included in the same group as China.
Saudi Arabia and Bahrain were also unable to guarantee that China would win, and Indonesia, led by head coach Shin Tae-yong at the time, also saw its power rise sharply due to the naturalization policy. Still, it was widely expected that China would rise to the fourth qualifying round and continue its hopes of advancing to the World Cup.
The reality was more disastrous. China was on the verge of being eliminated without even advancing to the fourth qualifying round. If China loses to Indonesia, the first A match in June, China's advance to the World Cup will be thwarted. In fact, just by drawing with Indonesia, it will be very difficult for China to advance to the fourth qualifying round. Despite the expansion of 48 countries in the World Cup, if China is eliminated from the third qualifying round, Chinese soccer fans will feel a lot of loss.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
