The Chinese national football team’s roster has changed. How did Ivan choose the players?
2024-08-22
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Chinese men's football coach Ivankovic announced yesterday the training list for the 18th round of the Asian qualifiers for the World Cup in September. There are 27 players on this list. Among them, Wang Haijian and Wei Zhen were selected for the national football team for the first time after Ivankovic took office. Wei Shihao, Ai Kesen, Gao Tianyi, Fang Hao and other players from the previous list are not included. The rest are basically "old faces" who have participated in the 36th round of the Asian qualifiers for the World Cup. This is the first time that the Chinese Football Association has announced the national football team list online. The players on the list will participate in the first two rounds of the top 18 against Japan and Saudi Arabia.
Last month, Wei Shihao was suspended for 4 games by the Chinese Football Association for violent behavior in the Chinese Super League. He has not participated in any official matches recently and his condition is difficult to guarantee. It is expected that he will not be selected. Elkeson has a low appearance rate in the league this season and his condition is also unpredictable. Gao Tianyi performed well in Shanghai Shenhua and secured his position as a main midfielder. His failure to be selected is a great pity.
In the last two rounds of the round of 36, although the Chinese team drew with Thailand at home and lost to South Korea 1-0 away, the team was able to advance to the round of 18 with a slight advantage of 1 goal difference over Thailand. This was actually due to the head coach Ivankovic's bold use of young players or newcomers such as Baihramu, Xie Wenneng, Wang Zhenao and Yang Zexiang. This result also gave Ivan's coaching team more confidence in making bold selections in the next round of 18.
From the current national football training lineup, we can see that Huang Zhengyu, Baihelamu and other young players who performed well last time are still selected, and two new players have been added, Wang Haijian, the defensive midfielder from Shanghai Shenhua, and Wei Zhen, a tall player who can play as a central defender and defensive midfielder in Shanghai Haigang. In addition, Alan, Lin Liangming, Li Yuanyi, Gao Zhunyi and other old players have returned to the team. From these players, we can see that Ivan's requirements are to make the players "tough", dare to fight, have strong mobility on the field, have strong willpower, be fearless in the face of strong opponents, and be able to fight to the end.
Regarding the criteria for selecting national team players, national football coach Ivan also said, "Our selection criteria are always the same. We have previously selected 14 new national team players to inject fresh blood into the team. We hope that the players will run more, fight more, not be afraid of opponents, show their self-confidence, and perform well in domestic leagues and cup competitions. We will always pay attention to such players."
Regarding the goal of the top 18, Ivan said: "When I first came to China, our goals were divided into long-term and short-term. The team has dreams, and the ultimate goal is the World Cup. This is simple, but the process is not simple. The competition is still very difficult and we have to fight one game at a time. Our goal is to let everyone have a dream and realize it."
In this World Cup qualifiers, the Chinese national football team is in Group C with Japan, Australia, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Indonesia. The first round will be against Japan on September 5, and the second round will be against Saudi Arabia at Dalian Soaring Bay Stadium on September 10. On August 23, Ivan will lead the national team to assemble in Dalian to prepare for the 18th round against Japan and Saudi Arabia.
Written by: Xinmin Evening News reporter Guan Yin
Image: Xinmin Evening News reporter Li Mingshen, official image
Editor: Shen Yuye
