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| The national soccer team played its first match against China at Yongin Mir Stadium on the 7th. Coach Dejan Zhurjevic of the Chinese national team. Yongin = Reporter Song Jeong-heon @sportschosun.com/2025.07.07/ |
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An indicator has emerged that shows the disastrous reality of the Chinese national soccer team.
China won a tough 1-0 victory over Hong Kong in the third round of the 2025 East Asian Football Federation (EAFF) E-1 Championship (East Asian Cup) at Yongin Mir Stadium in Gyeonggi Province at 4 p.m. on the 15th.China previously lost 0-3 and 0-2 to South Korea and Japan, finishing the tournament in third place with one win and two losses (three points).
China took the lead in the 20th minute of the first half when Zhang Winning scored, but no additional points were scored after that. In the 10th minute of the second half, the game became so intense that players from both teams even came out with bench clearing pouring into the stadium, but the flow did not change much.
China wanted a turnaround for the team, which has been sluggish recently in the East Asian Cup. After a shocking slump in the third Asian qualifying round for the 2026 North-China World Cup finals, he finished fifth in Group C, and hopes for the fourth qualifying round could not continue. The performance fell to the bottom, and the resentment of Chinese fans grew. In the end, Branko Ivankovic's replacement blocked him from taking responsibility for the qualifying round. Dejan Djurjevic wanted to find a clue to a rebound in the East Asian Cup, where he took the helm as acting coach, but ended the tournament in third place with a disastrous performance.
Even a shocking record appeared. China's Beijing News reported that the Chinese national team scored one goal against Hong Kong to escape the bottom. Zhang Winning's score was the first goal of the Chinese national team's East Asian Cup and the first field goal in 2025. After the East Asian Cup, the Chinese national team effectively ended this year's major competitions, and acting coach Djurjevic also completed his mission. In the three games, he didn't show much. Now, the Chinese Football Association should appoint a new coach as soon as possible and confirm the opponent for the warm-up match as well,' he said.
The Chinese national team played a total of seven games in 2025. They were four matches in the third Asian qualifying round and three matches in the East Asian Cup. In these matches, China scored two goals and nine runs. One of them was a penalty goal scored by Wang Wang-dong against Bahrain in the final match of the third Asian qualifying round, and Jang Winning's score was the first on-field goal. China scored 13 goals and 19 goals in three Asian Cup matches and 10 World Cup qualifiers last year. Compared to last year, this year's record is more serious.
China, which even replaced Ivankovic, also showed disappointing performance at the East Asian Cup. If it is not properly maintained after the appointment of a new coach, the dark period is expected to be even longer.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
