Will the results change just because the Chinese national team has a new coach?
The men's national football team, led by Hong Myung-bo, will compete in the EAFF E-1 Championship (Eastern Asian Cup) scheduled to be held at Yongin Mir Stadium on July 7. The Hong Myung-bo squad will kick off the tournament with a match against China at 8 p.m. on July 7, followed by matches against Hong Kong at 8 p.m. on July 11 and Japan at 7:24 p.m. on July 15.
This tournament is not held during the international match window set by the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA). It is difficult to call up players from Europe. The men's national team consists of players mainly from the K League, with 23 players listed, excluding 3 players from J-League teams. Among them, only Kim Dong-hun (Incheon) is from K League 2, while the rest are from K League 1.
J-League players will play a crucial role after a long time. Na Sang-ho (Machida) will return to the national team after two years since being called up in June 2023.
The Japanese national team has also formed its roster centered around J-League players, excluding overseas players. There might be advantages in conditioning and organization. Domestic players are expected to do their best to catch the eye of head coach Hajime Moriyasu.
On the 27th, the Chinese national team officially dismissed head coach Branko Ivanković and officially appointed Dejan Jurićević, the U20 national team coach, as the head coach of the A national team. Ironically, Jurićević's debut match is expected to be against Korea.
Chinese media are instilling hope that the national team will perform well just because a new coach has come in. 'Sohu' stated, "In the Eastern Asian Cup, Japan, Korea, China, and Hong Kong will participate. If China gives its best and showcases its strengths, it could win against Korea and Japan and even aim for the championship."
It went on to say, "Korea has no players competing in Europe. This is good news for China. While the gap with Korea is significant, if the team is centered around domestic players, China also has a chance to win. Japan is in a similar situation. Japan plans to field its third-string team in this tournament."
Even though Son Heung-min is absent, it is hard to imagine Korea losing to China at home. The recent form of K League 1 top scorer Jeon Jin-woo, along with Joo Min-kyu joining in, strengthens Korea's offensive power. Losing to a Chinese team that has not yet mastered the new coach's tactics is just a wishful thinking of the Chinese media.
[OSEN]