The Chinese national football team is once again experiencing confusion in selecting a coach. Following their failure to qualify for the 2026 North and Central America World Cup, there are efforts to reorganize the national team, but realistic budget constraints and limitations in football infrastructure are making it difficult to recruit a coach.

The Night of Football program on CCTV pointed out the problems faced by the Chinese Football Association in the process of looking for a new national team coach. According to the program, the salary cap for a coach of the Chinese national team is 1.2 million euros (1.9 billion won), which also includes the overall budget for coaching staff salaries.

Night of Football bluntly assessed, "With this budget, it’s difficult to persuade a skilled young coach from Western Europe," adding that "it’s hard to even set up a negotiation table with proven masters on the international stage."

China recorded disappointing results in the 2026 World Cup Asian qualifying rounds. They finished fifth in Group C with 3 wins and 7 losses, accumulating only 9 points, and missed out on advancing to the fourth qualifying round. Even with the number of teams qualified for the finals expanded from 32 to 48, China ultimately could not cross the threshold.

On the 14th, the Chinese Football Association abruptly dismissed coach Branko Ivanković. Following this, they began the process of appointing a successor but are struggling to find a suitable candidate due to budget issues.

In the past, China did not hesitate to spend money. It is reported that in the mid-2010s, they paid Italian coach Marcello Lippi 23 million euros (36.5 billion won). However, even then, they did not achieve the expected results and ultimately ended up with disappointing outcomes in relation to the massive investments.

Since then, the Chinese Football Association has shown skepticism toward the strategy of hiring a master with a large salary. As the perception of it being a fruitless investment has taken hold, they are currently shifting their strategy to look for a 'realistic figure' rather than a proven star coach.

Chinese fans are also viewing the current situation with cynicism. On Sina Sports, reactions include statements like "Let’s just eliminate Chinese men's football. Let’s invest the money for a coach into youth training facilities instead," "Where has all the invested money gone?" and "It’s not a problem of the coach but a matter of ability."

Some fans suggested, "A young coach with urgency might be better than an expensive name," calling for more fundamental reforms.

Ultimately, it seems that the Chinese Football Association is shifting its direction toward finding solutions internally rather than recruiting external masters. For now, Dejan Žurđević, who leads the Chinese Under-20 (U-20) national team, is likely to take charge of the senior national team. He is familiar with the Chinese football system through the youth team and is regarded as a suitable figure for discovering young talent and facilitating generational change.

[OSEN]