Newly appointed Chinese men's national football team head coach Branko Ivankovic attends a press conference in north China's Tianjin Municipality, March 8, 2024. /Xinhua
China unveiled a 31-player roster on Friday for the upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup Asian qualifiers, where new head coach Branko Ivankovic made his debut.
The new head coach of the Chinese men's national football team said that his primary goal is to help China reach the Asian Qualifiers third round, with the ultimate goal of competing in the World Cup.
It was the Croatian's first appearance since being appointed by the Chinese Football Association (CFA) in February.
The 70-year-old had coached famous European clubs, including Germany's Hannover 96 and Croatia's GNK Dinamo Zagreb, before leading Shandong Taishan to lift the Chinese Super League (CSL) trophy in the 2010 season.
The Croatian, who coached Oman in the Asian Cup in January, commented on China's tournament performance and emphasized the need for the team to be more offensive.
"According to my experience and football philosophy, China need to be more offensive in the next games. China didn't even score a goal in the Asian Cup."
"We have to improve our passing accuracy, be more efficient, and be more aggressive," said the veteran coach.
Croatian coach Branko Ivankovic attends a press conference in Tianjin, China, March 8, 2024. /Xinhua
China now rank third in Group C of Asian qualifiers after beating Thailand 2-1 and then losing 3-0 to South Korea in their first two matches. The top two teams in each group will advance to the next round, where 18 teams will compete for World Cup tickets.
"Our primary goal is to make the last 18, and we will work to build a strong national team. Our ultimate goal is to qualify for the World Cup," stated Ivankovic, who has believed the new role means a big challenge, but he is confident that the team can achieve good results with everyone working together.
Ivankovic also mentioned the Chinese players' mental situations, claiming that his footballers lack confidence.
"We need to give our players more confidence and belief in winning by changing our training methods and communicating with them during training."
Branko Ivankovic, then coach of Oman, gestures during the Qatar 2023 AFC Asian Cup group match between Saudi Arabia and Oman at the Khalifa International Stadium in Doha, Qatar, January 16, 2024. /CFP
Ivankovic's first test with the Chinese team will be their back-to-back World Cup qualifying games against Singapore, on March 21 and 26 respectively.
"There are many good players in China, and we will need to take our time finding them. Every time we train in the future, we will bring in two to three new players," said the coach.
"It is important for us to choose new players, and I believe many CSL players have the ability to play for the national team," he added.
The 31-man roster is as follows:
Goalkeepers: Liu Dianzuo, Yan Junling, Zhao Bo, Wang Dalei;
Defenders: Jiang Guangtai, Zhang Linpeng, Zhu Chenjie, Jiang Shenglong, Liu Yang, Li Lei, Wang Zhen'ao, Li Shuai, Li Ang, Gao Zhunyi, Deng Hanwen;
Midfielder: Chen Pu, Xie Wenneng, Li Yuanyi, Cheng Jin, Wei Shihao, Dai Weijun, Gao Tianyi, Xie Pengfei, Lin Liangming, Li Ke, Ba Dun, Wang Shangyuan;
Forwards: Wu Lei, Ai Kesen, Fei Nanduo, Zhang Yuning.
(With input from Xinhua)