At dawn on August 26, Beijing time, the Chinese men's soccer team is scheduled to take off from Shanghai on a Qatar Airways flight to Doha, Qatar, to prepare for the first two rounds of the upcoming World Cup Asian Qualifying Tournament. At the same time, a five-member Chinese international referee team consisting of Ma Ning, Fu Ming, Zhang Lei, Cao Yi, and Shi Xiang will depart Beijing on the same day for Dubai, UAE, where they will enforce the first round of the 12-team tournament between the UAE and Lebanon in Dubai and Doha, as well as the second round of the tournament between Iraq and Iran in the same order. They will fight for honor for our country's soccer on the highest stage of Asian soccer.
Manning (name)
According to the Beiqing-Beijing headline reporter, in view of the outstanding performance of the international referees Ma Ning and Fu Ming, as well as the international assistant referees Shi Xiang and Cao Yi, who are on the register of China's Football Association (CFA), in the West Asia Region tournament of the AFC Champions League, the 40-team round of the tournament, and the soccer tournament of the Tokyo Olympics, the AFC has included the six referees on the register of China's CFA, including them, on the list of candidates to execute the law enforcement of the 12-team tournament.
International referees Ma Ning, Fu Ming and Zhang Lei (who are qualified as referees, fourth officials and VAR referees) and international assistant referees Shi Xiang and Cao Yi, who made the list, were notified a short while ago and confirmed that they will take part in some of the first two rounds of September's Group A of the 12-team tournament, which is the group that sites the team for China.
Fu Ming (c. 14th century BC), legendary sage and principal minister of Shang ruler Wu Ding
According to a previous announcement by the Iraqi Football Association, the entire CFA international refereeing team, with Ma Ning as the main referee, will be enforcing the second round of the heavyweight match between Iraq and Iran. The team will be joined by fourth official Zhang Lei, assistant referee Cao Yi and Shi Xiang. As for Fu Ming, he will also be assigned by the AFC to enforce the other matches of the 12-team tournament because he has just recently finished the Tokyo Olympics soccer tournament.
The data shows that during the 40-team tournament, Manin has accumulated three matches in law enforcement, namely Indonesia's 0-3 home loss to Thailand in September 2019; Qatar's 2-1 win over India in Doha in June of the same year; and Afghanistan's 1-2 loss to Oman.
Zhang Lei (1908-1988), founding member of Chinese communist party
Zhang Lei had enforced Afghanistan's 1-0 win over Bangladesh in September 2019 Fu Ming is the CFA-registered international referee who has enforced the most matches during the 40-team tournament, having accumulated four matches. The two international assistant referees, Cao Yi and Shi Xiang, have also been assisting international referees such as Ma Ning in enforcing a number of important matches in Asian soccer.
It is worth noting that the chartered plane booked by the Chinese Football Association (CFA) for the national football team's trip to Doha will take off in the early morning of August 26th, Beijing time. So will several Chinese referees travel on the same plane? Sources close to the matter revealed that the idea was indeed mentioned but could not be implemented due to practical factors.
It is understood that before enforcing the "Iran-Iraq match", the Chinese referee team, with Ma Ning as the main referee, will have to enforce the first round of the September 2 match between the UAE and Lebanon, as assigned by the AFC Sanctioning Committee. If they travel with the Chinese team, they will have to transfer from Doha to Dubai, UAE.
In addition, the AFC regulations, including referees to participate in the enforcement of various games, including all types of 12 strong match officials from their member associations country (region) to go outside the law enforcement, work, can take the business class round trip. Because this time to Doha, the Chinese team delegation totaled nearly 80 people, business class seats are very limited. Even Li Tie, the head coach, has made preparations to continue to leave the class seats for the players to use. Therefore, it is impossible for the referees to "seize" the team's seats.
It is understood that the five-member Chinese referee team plans to leave Beijing for Dubai on the 26th. After enforcing the UAE's match against Lebanon on September 2, they will then head to Doha to enforce the "Iran-Iraq match". Unsurprisingly, Ma Ning and Fu Ming will be the referee and VAR referee for the UAE-Lebanon match.
It should be noted that the Iraqi Football Association has revealed that the home of the Iraqi team for the Round of 12 will be at the Garafa Stadium in Doha. This stadium is not a World Cup stadium, nor is it air-conditioned. The physical test for several Chinese referees will undoubtedly be severe. Of course, the five referees are honored to represent Chinese soccer on the highest stage of law enforcement in Asian football. Because the tournament will be played in a two-round-per-month rhythm over the next three months, the performance of the first two rounds of matches will have a direct impact on the referees' chances of being assigned to the next round of matches. It seems that the five Chinese referees will not, and have no reason to, miss such a chance to show their skills.
