Li Xiaopeng, head coach of the Chinese national football team. /CFP
Li Xiaopeng, head coach of the Chinese national football team, led the franchise to a draw and three losses in the four 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifier games in 76 days. The team again failed to reach the World Cup. Li admitted in an interview with China Media Group (CMG) that the Chinese national team is not good enough to qualify for the World Cup.
"That's what it is right now," Li said. "We are not good enough in players, team and everything else. I think everyone knows better than I do about how to build a strong national team, so there's no point for me to talk about that. But if we keep wishing for surprises like a lottery, it may take longer for us to reach the goal of entering the World Cup."
Li believes his players did their best, but he is concerned that they might grow indifferent to losses. Having played 10 games at this stage of the World Cup qualification tournament, China had only one win, three draws and suffered six losses, including to Vietnam 3-1 and to Oman 2-0.
Wu Lei (#7) of China is given a yellow card in the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifier game against Japan at Saitama Stadium 2002 in Saitama, Japan, January 27, 2022. /CFP
"I think, in a way, we lacked the spirit of sticking to one task with perseverance," Li said. "Like this time, from the last stage to this one, we had three managers for the games. I think it shows how difficult this job is."
Li had very limited time to coach the team when he took over. He tried to help his players grow more confident, but realized that many of them often worried too much about the game suddenly crumbling.
"If the brave decision is worth 10 points and the safest decision is worth one point on the field, our players will go for the safest option," Li said. "When I talked to football association management and leaders, I kept telling them that our players could only show at most 60 percent of what they are capable of during practice."
Li has coached a lot of the national team players before and he knows how good they are. "In the Chinese Super League, Wu Xi could handle Marouane Fellaini, Paulinho, Anderson Talisca and Renato Augusto. Our backs defended against Alex Teixeira, Oscar, Hulk and Graziano Pelle well. But in the national team, they couldn't even stop a guy that I can't name. I can't accept that," Li said.
Players of China look on after the 3-1 loss to Vietnam in the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifier game at My Dinh National Stadium in Hanoi, Vietnam, February 1, 2022. /CFP
"Sometimes I ask them, 'Are you playing against Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi after you put on the national team jersey?'" He added.
Many of the veteran players are about to leave the national squad. Li said he learnt a lot from them and these experiences will all be helpful to the rise of Chinese football. Meanwhile, he encouraged the young generation to find a better league and refine themselves there.
The next major tournament for the Chinese national team is the Asian Football Confederation Asian Cup in 2023. Li revealed that when he was appointed as the head coach, the Asian Cup was his major task. He told CMG that he wants to figure a lot details, including franchise building and player selection, out before making plans for the Asian Cup.
Zhu Chenjie (#20) of China competes with Zahir al-Aghbari of Oman for the ball in the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifier game at Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex Stadium in Muscat, Oman, March 29, 2022. /CFP
"As a coach, it's my responsibility to help the team go through smooth transition and leave my successor a complete group when I leave," Li said.
China only attended one World Cup in 2002 and suffered so many failures before and after that. "First we must face and accept the fact before thinking about making improvements. If we can evaluate the presence correctly, we are likely to make detours in the future," Li said.