"The Chinese national team is weak, but from the coach's perspective, it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."

Zhibo.com reported on the 24th (Korea time) that "For foreign coach Jurjević, the position of head coach for the Chinese national team is an unparalleled honor. He knows well that he will never have the opportunity to lead a team stronger than China throughout his career," and added, "Being the head coach of a national team from a country with a population of 1.4 billion and immense media influence is a symbolic position that is hard to obtain anywhere in the world."

The Chinese Football Association appointed Ivanković as head coach after parting ways with Aleksandar Janković in February last year. However, after failing to qualify for the North and Central America World Cup, he was unexpectedly dismissed on the 13th.

With the World Cup now expanded to 48 countries, expectations for qualification exploded within China. However, it failed. Under Ivanković's regime, China finished the third qualifying round with 3 wins and 7 losses, placing 5th in Group C. This marks the sixth consecutive failure to qualify for the World Cup since the 2002 Korea-Japan World Cup.

As a result, the Chinese Football Association terminated Ivanković's contract due to poor performance. It is reported that the contract between both parties included a clause allowing for termination without penalty if World Cup qualification was unsuccessful.

Sohu.com noted, "Of course, Ivanković cannot escape responsibility for the failure to qualify for the World Cup. He left for a flight at 1 a.m. without saying goodbye to the players immediately after his dismissal. Since he had signed a contract with the goal of advancing through the World Cup qualifiers, it is not surprising that he was dismissed for failing to achieve that. Under his leadership, the team's performance was disastrous. The results were simply unacceptable."

Furthermore, Sohu.com added, "The Chinese national team players were by no means lacking in skill. Wu Lei, Zhang Guangtai, Zhang Yuning, and Wang Dalei were all outstanding players in the league. However, Ivanković failed to employ these excellent players effectively. His tactics were outdated and uninspiring, and his ability to command during matches was poor."

Moreover, Sohu.com lamented, "Ivanković should have been replaced halfway through the third qualifying round, and had there been a change back then, Chinese football might not have reached such a miserable situation today."

Meanwhile, the media reported on the 17th, citing 'Zhibo8', that "U-20 Chinese football team coach Dejan Jurjević will take over the interim leadership of the Chinese senior national team for the East Asian Cup in July." The Chinese Football Association, which began its search for a replacement immediately after Ivanković's dismissal, reportedly considered a Korean coach and members of the existing coaching staff from China among the candidates.

The replacement coach is said to be Jurjević, who led the U-20 team in February this year to the 2025 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup, where they were eliminated in the quarterfinals. The Chinese team was unable to secure a spot in the U-20 World Cup, having lost to Saudi Arabia and exited in the quarterfinals.

In fact, after the match against Oman, former coach Ivanković also held his position despite consecutive losses to Japan and Saudi Arabia, emphasizing that "the position of head coach for the Chinese national team is the greatest honor of my life." However, it was revealed later that he had originally planned to retire immediately after coaching the Oman national team, but came to China as a 'pension' concept.

Zhibo.com stated, "If you are the coach of the Chinese national team, you can explain your tactics in front of hundreds of millions of viewers and hundreds of journalists, something unimaginable in Croatia or Serbia. It is literally a 'dream stage' for coaches from small European countries," adding, "While the compensation may not be large, it is a position that everyone dreams of and desires."

[OSEN]