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| 스포츠조선 DB |
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| ReutersYonhap News |
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It seems that the Chinese Football Association made a proposal to a candidate other than coach Paulo Bento.
China's Sohu reported on the 16th (Korea time) 'It is a heated debate which coach the Chinese Football Association will appoint after Dejan Djurjevic.'"
China replaced coach Branko Ivankovic after the third Asian qualifying round for the 2026 North-China World Cup. He was held accountable for his frustration with the World Cup, and Ivankovic had to leave. China has had to move forward again with the goal of the 2030 World Cup, so it is preoccupied with the appointment of a new coach.
Until the 2025 East Asian Football Federation (EAFF) E-1 Championship (East Asian Cup), acting coach Djurjevic led the national team, but it has become difficult to expect official promotion due to poor performance at the tournament. In the end, China is expected to consider several candidates for the appointment of a new director again.
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| 스포츠조선 DB |
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Since Ivankovic's dismissal, there has been considerable interest in the candidate for China's head coach. Shin Tae-yong, who played in Indonesia, and Seo Jung-won, who is well-received in the Chinese Super League, appeared as candidates, and Robert Mancini and Stefano Pioli, the European representative, were mentioned.
The names of directors who gained experience on the Asian stage also began to appear. Bento, who was in charge of South Korea, was also a candidate. Bento led Sporting and the Portuguese national team, and recently took charge of the Korean national team from 2018 to 2022 and reached the round of 16 away after advancing to the World Cup finals. Bento, who shed tears while leaving South Korea, later served as the coach of the United Arab Emirates, but was dismissed due to poor performance during the third Asian qualifying round for the 2026 North-China World Cup. There was a steady prospect that the proposal could be directed to Bento, who is unemployed.
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| ReutersYonhap News |
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| ReutersYonhap News |
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But China's choice was not Bento. Sohu said 'Chinese fans expect the association will be able to invest a lot of money to appoint Roger Schmidt. Schmidt is a well-known European coach. He also worked as a Beijing Guoan coach. He is a coach that many fans admire. Now he is out of work, and the Chinese Society has sent an offer. If the proposed salary is reasonable, he will be able to serve as the national team coach.
Roger Schmidt is on the list of candidates for the Chinese Football Association. Schmidt, who slowly gained leadership experience on the German stage and steadily took over the European stage, is a coach who has coached Son Heung-min at Leverkusen in the past and Kim Min-jae at Beijing Guoan. He recently experienced Benfica through Eindhoven, was replaced by Benfica in 2024 and has yet to take on a new managerial position.
It is an attractive enough candidate for China. Experiencing the Chinese stage in Beijing and having a basic understanding of Chinese players can also be a good background for demonstrating one's capabilities as a coach of the Chinese national team. It is also attractive that Schmidt does not need a high salary because he has been on the decline since Benfica's days. Many fans are expected to pay attention to whether Schmidt can be a reversal card for Chinese soccer.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
