 |
| ◇photo courtesy of the Korea Professional Football Association |
|
The names of Korean leaders are mentioned as candidates for the next head coach of the Chinese national team, drawing keen attention.
Tencent, a Chinese portal, highlighted the candidates for the next head coach on the 14th, saying, `Who will lead the Chinese national team over the next five years?' In this article, director Seo Jung-won, who is leading Chengdu Rong-cheong, was first mentioned. The media reported that Seo led Chengdu for four years and five months, raising his team from the middle to third place in the Super League. In 2023, he set an unbeaten record in 27 games. 'His counterattack tactics in the 5-4-1 formation are excellent in speed and tactics. He also evaluated that he has excellent tactical flexibility against the strong team. However, he questioned whether the national team will be able to demonstrate its capabilities while it is said that it is highly dependent on foreign players.
 |
| ◇photo courtesy of the Korea Professional Football Association |
|
Director Seo Jung-won is not the only one. Coach Choi Kang-hee (Shandong Taishan), who has been mentioned as a firefighter every time he searches for the next Chinese national team head coach, is also on the list. Tencent said, "'Coach Choi won the 2023 FA Cup in Shandong, including his career in winning the Asian Champions League' and "'He can use not only the shut-up attack, but also the counterattack, and he is also good at using foreign players.'" However, he also expressed his concern, saying, `Will the national team be able to overcome the criticism of the next generation that he experienced in Shandong and the problems in the locker room?' In addition to Seo and Choi, Wiganway and Milan Ristich (Meizhou Haaca), who are leading Tianjin Jinmanhu, were mentioned as candidates.
China, which was eliminated from the third Asian qualifying round for the 2026 North-China World Cup, terminated its contract with coach Branko Ivankovic. Local media outlets such as the Beijing Youth Daily reported that `there is a clause inserted between the Chinese Football Association and Ivankovic that the contract can be terminated without penalty if the team fails to pass the third qualifying round\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\.
 |
| 신화Yonhap News |
|
In the meantime, a total of 12 foreign coaches have gone through the Chinese national team. However, a non-European leader has never taken the helm. Korean leaders, including Lee Jang-soo and O Ji-ryong, have been mentioned as the next head coach of the national team whenever they make a splash in the Chinese Super League, but it has not actually been achieved. However, Southeast Asian teams such as Vietnam and Indonesia have recently brought in Korean leaders to sharpen their power, and China seems to be paying attention to this. Tencent says 'Foreign leaders have significant advantages in terms of tactical innovation and discipline. However, famous coaches such as Marcelo Lippi and Fabio Cannavaro failed in the national team due to their dependence on foreign players in the Super League, predicting that Seo Jung-won and Choi Kang-hee can help ease Chinese soccer's dependence on foreign players.
 |
| 신화Yonhap News |
|
However, it is unclear whether Seo Jung-won and Choi Kang-hee will easily accept China's proposal. It is difficult to say that the possibility of acceptance is high given that the environment of the Chinese national team's coach position, which has been reduced to a "people's curse" and the reality of having to watch the government as well as the Super League, is too high.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
