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Timur Kapaje, who led Uzbekistan to the 2026 North-China World Cup finals, is considered a candidate for the next head coach of China.
China's Beijing Youth Daily reported on the 26th (Korea time) 'Kafazé is emerging as a candidate for the next coach of the national team' The newspaper reported that `Kafazé wants to lead Uzbekistan to the finals, but the Uzbek Football Association wants a European coach. After his offer to coach Joachim Loeb and others was rejected, he is set to discuss with Paulo Bento, saying that if Uzbekistan finally replaces the coach, Kapaje will be included in the Chinese national team's options.
Coach Kapaje, who played 119 A matches for Uzbekistan during his active career, played for Incheon United in 2011 and experienced the K-League. After retiring in 2017, he began his leadership career as the acting coach of the Uzbek national team, and afterwards, he went through the Uzbek League and led the under-23 national team to the Olympic finals for the first time in history. When coach Sletsko Katanets laid down the baton of the adult national team in January, he took over and led him to the World Cup finals, rapidly emerging as a star leader.
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China's Sohu said `Kafaje is similar to Dejan Zhurjevic, who previously served as the acting head coach of the national team, but his leadership is ahead of him.' The team's leadership in leading the Hangzhou Asian Games bronze medal, Olympics and World Cup finals is sufficient to prove his capability. He then emphasized that `Although the work of replacing the Chinese national team coach is still uncertain, if Uzbekistan finally decides to replace the coach, Kafaze could be the best option for China in terms of career, understanding of Asian soccer and practicality.'
Of course, it is uncertain whether China's wish will come true. It is true that Uzbekistan is turning to European leaders shortly after their trip to the finals, but no concrete results have been made. There is also considerable public opinion that Kapaje, who has established himself as a `national leader' by leading the Olympics to the World Cup finals, should lead the team to North, Central and American countries.
China has a long absence from the national team. After completing the 2025 East Asian Football Federation (EAFF) E-1 Championship (East Asian Cup) last month, he deprived Djurjevic of his acting position and is looking for the next head coach. However, there is only a lot of criticism and no concrete progress has been made. Eventually, as the A-match was skipped in September, the plan to strengthen the national team's power is getting further away. I'm reaching out here and there, but there's no positive answer. Now we are waiting for Uzbekistan's move to end.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
