Chinese reporters were also disappointed by the poor performance of the Chinese national team.
The Chinese men's football team, led by coach Dejan Djurdjevic, won 1-0 against Hong Kong in the third match of the 2025 East Asian Football Federation (EAFF) E-1 Championship (East Asian Cup) held at Yongin Mir Stadium on the afternoon of the 15th. After losing to Korea (0-3) and Japan (0-2), China achieved its first victory and finished the tournament in 3rd place. Hong Kong recorded the lowest position with 3 losses.
Throughout the match, China had far more good chances, but their finishing was dreadful. Their frustrating attack continued as they couldn’t even score when given the opportunity. To make matters worse, China displayed 'kung fu football' with rough fouls and lost in terms of sportsmanship.
China scored its first goal in the 20th minute of the first half. Huang Zhengwei, who exchanged passes with Zhang Yuning, scored with a diagonal shot with his right foot that rolled into the goal. China celebrated scoring its first goal of the tournament after three games.
China wasted numerous goal-scoring opportunities. Hong Kong's fullback, Yu Ji-nam, was injured in a collision with a Chinese player and was substituted.
In the second half, Hong Kong players, angered by China's continuous fouls, responded with violence. In the 10th minute of the second half, a Hong Kong player hit a Chinese player in the face. An angry Zhang Yuning retaliated by tripping the Hong Kong player. The excited players from both teams got tangled up, leading to a collective brawl.
After the match, Djurdjevic said, "We finally secured our first victory in a friendly match. The young players performed well against strong teams like Korea, Japan, and Hong Kong in this tournament," expressing satisfaction.
However, the expressions of the Chinese press present at the scene were not bright. This was because they did not achieve a significant victory even against the weakest team, Hong Kong.
A Chinese reporter asked acting manager Djurdjevic directly, "Do you want to continue as the manager of the Chinese national team even after the tournament?" Djurdjevic avoided the question by saying, "I believe both you (the media) and I want victories. Thank you."
Another sharp question followed: "Are you satisfied with the tournament results?" Djurdjevic emphasized, "The opponents were too strong, making it a difficult match. I tried to give younger players more opportunities. The players need a long process. Players coming from youth have a long way to go to become national team players. They need to grow through such tournaments."
[OSEN]