On March 26 at 11:00 GMT, the Chinese men's soccer team will play the second warm-up match against New Zealand. Jankovic will adjust the team's starting lineup, and Taishan's Sun Guowen and Chen Pu are expected to get a chance to start. On the attacking end, Wu Lei is still Yankovic's first choice, and whether newcomers such as Barton and Zhang Jiaqi can get a chance is a bright spot.
The national soccer team failed to capitalize on their chances in the first warm-up match, drawing 0-0 with New Zealand in 30 minutes, with Wu Lei and Lin Liangming both missing scoring chances. Jankovic also regretted that the first match was only a draw. Considering the short interval between the two warm-up matches, Jankovic made it clear before the match that he would rotate his squad.
At the goalie position, Yan Junling's overall play was steady, further stabilizing her starting position. Facing New Zealand, both Wang Dalei and Liu Dengzheng are likely to play, with the two battling it out for second keeper. In the backline, the national football team doesn't have many center back options this time around. Apart from Wei Zhen and Zhu Chenjie, who are starting for the first time, Li Shuai and Zhang Jiaqi could make cameo appearances on the bench. Under normal circumstances, Jankovic will keep the defense line stable, Wei Zhen and Zhu Chenjie are both relatively young and their bodies recover quickly. They are expected to continue to start.
At wingback, Liu Yang and Zhang Linpeng played as wingbacks in the first game. They both played the full game and played well overall. If the lineup is rotated, Sun Guowen and Deng Hanwen will have a chance, especially Sun Guowen. He is in the national team for the first time and played well in the warm-up matches. They are expected to make their national team debut in this game. In the midfield, the national team has more choices in the lineup.
In the midfield position, the combination of Wu Xi and Xu Xin was stable in the first game. Zhang Jiaqi, He Chao, and Wang Shangyuan were rotation options. Winger Liu Binbin and Wei Shihao were the starting combination in the first match. Wei Shihao had a relatively good performance. On the bench, Lin Liangming and Xie Pengfei both have a chance to start in rotation. Striker Wu Lei still has a clear role to play, Chen Pu is expected to start in rotation, and Barton is also a replacement for the striker.
