In that exciting 2005 AFC Champions League last eight match, Shenzhen Jianlibao and Shandong
Luneng (city in Shandong)
Lost to Ahli and Ittihad successively; turn to 2012, Guangzhou
Evergrande (name)
met a stubborn resistance from the Ittihad in the last-eight clash; and Li Tie, as that
Evergrande (name)
's Chinese assistant coach, witnessed this lost chapter; in 2013, the Chinese team went down 1-2 to Saudi Arabia away from home in the Asian Cup qualifiers, while the Chinese club and national team's tournaments in Jeddah invariably ended in failure.
The clock is ticking down to October 13, 2021, at 1:00 a.m. Beijing time at the King Abdullah Sports City Stadium in Jeddah, where China will face Saudi Arabia, who have won all three of their matches and are provisionally at the top of the standings, in the fourth round of the Round of 12 tournament.
However, the challenges facing the national soccer team this time around are clearly more complex than the Chinese Super League teams of yesteryear in the AFC Champions League, or that Asian Cup qualifying team.
Before the match, national soccer team manager Li Tie and captain Wu Xi attended the press conference together. Li Tie said that Saudi Arabia has a clear home advantage and expects the Chinese team to return to their home field for the match. At the same time, he also said that this match is a great opportunity for the team to prove themselves.
"Immediately after the match, we moved from UAE to Saudi Arabia. Due to the short interval between matches, in the last two or three days we let the players fully rest and carried out targeted training against Saudi Arabia." Li Tie revealed that two players were unable to participate due to injuries, "At present, except for Artemisia Junmin and Li Lei, all the other players are ready to put in the game. As we can see from the previous rounds, Saudi Arabia is a strong team, and this is a good opportunity for us to show ourselves. We will give our best on the pitch and I believe my players are ready."
