Highlights of the matchup: National soccer team faces Guam, looks ahead to Asian qualifiers
At 19:30 on May 30 in Beijing time zone, Suzhou Olympic Sports Center is filled with passion, where China's men's national football team will go head-to-head with Guam in a fierce competition in Group A of the 2022 Qatar FIFA World Cup Asian Qualifying Round 40 tournament. Guam, with its lowest FIFA world ranking and embarrassing status of losing the first five rounds of the tournament, is like a flat boat that just went through a coaching change a month ago. The Guam team, which lost 0-7 to the national soccer team, can only hope to create some trouble this time, while the national soccer team, which has the right time and place, can collect as much as 1 million dollars in prize money by winning this game.
Looking back at the pre-World Cup, Guam was at the bottom of Group A with only 2 goals scored and 19 conceded in 5 matches, making them the only team in the group to confirm that they would not qualify for the World Cup Finals. In the latest FIFA Men's World Ranking, Guam is ranked 198th and remains at the bottom of Group A. In fact, Guam's highest-ever ranking is 198th in the FIFA Men's World Ranking. In fact, Guam's all-time high ranking is only 146th, with an average ranking of 191st, making it a weak team that should not be underestimated.
The history of our team's encounters with Guam is marked by two memorable victories. One was in the 2000 Asian Cup qualifier, when the national team thrashed Guam by a lopsided score of 19-0, setting a record for the most lopsided win to date, and the other was in the first round of the World Cup qualifier on October 10, 2019, when the national team thrashed the Guam team by a score of 7-0 at Guangzhou's Tianhe Stadium in the team's last international A-level match at home; Yang Xu scored in the first 31 minutes of the match scoring four goals in a row, with Wu Lei, Wu Xi and Ackerson contributing one goal each.
On April 16 of this year, former head coach Carl Dodd resigned due to a family emergency and returned to Australia. on April 25, the Guam Football Association announced that South Korean-born coach Seo Dong-won had taken over as head coach to lead the team for the remainder of the group stage of the World Preliminary 40 tournament. Seo Dong-won was a longtime coach of college teams in South Korea and was voted Coach of the Year in 2016. He was also a member of the Korea Football Association's Russia 2018 World Cup Skills Research Team and is currently a member of the Korea Professional League's Skills Research Team.
Due to the epidemic, Seo Dong-won did not personally travel to Guam after his appointment, but briefly communicated with several Guam internationals via Zoom video. The Guam team's domestic training is being handled by another South Korean, Kim Sang-hoon, the technical director of the Guam Football Association. Prior to the resumption of the World Qualifying Tournament, Seo Dong-won asked the team for a short training camp to teach the players about teamwork and effective tactical scoring, as well as zone defense and interplay on defense.
On May 14, the Guam Football Association released its 24-player roster for the tournament. Compared to the last roster against our team, there were major changes in the list nominated by Seo Dong-won and Kim Sang-hoon, and only 11 players were the same as the previous list, for example, 16-year-old star Stenson, who was selected last time, was dropped this time, while goalkeepers Jaya, Marlon Evans, Hale Hale, and Justin Lee returned after missing the previous match against our team.
Team Guam played an in-house instructional game at the national team training base on the evening of the 18th local time, which was streamed live through the website, although the game was not open to spectators. The result was an 8-4 win for the Blue Team over the White Team, in which the Blue Team lined up in a 5-4-1 formation in the first half.
Observing the game, Guam's players were generally slow, especially in handling the ball, and some of them were not "lean" enough. It is worth noting that six players, including Hale Hale, play in the U.S. Even though they play for college teams, these U.S.-based players play in the center of the field and are mainly responsible for the team's offense.
Overall, Guam's international players are not "professional", but their love for the sport is undeniable. It's worth noting that 30-year-old midfielder Mark Chagualaf has earned his AFC B coaching certificate, so they're not just "for fun" players.
According to the itinerary released by the Guam Football Association (GFA), the Guam team left the country on the 20th, and under the leadership of Korean head coach Seo Dong-won, they are scheduled to enter the country on the 23rd, and then train in the country for about a week before the match against our team. Seo Dong-won has asked the team to face the challenges bravely, try to create problems for their opponents, including our team, and show the Guam fans the spirit of never giving up! (Aoyo Cheuk)
With Guam's 24-man roster
Goalkeepers: Sean Evans, Dallas Jaye
Defensemen: Marlon Evans, Isiah Lagutang, Alexander Lee, Justin Lee, Nathaniel Lee, Morgan McKenna, Leon Morimoto, Ryan Kitugua Jr.
Forward: Sean Agee, Mark Chaguaraf, Jason Cunliffe, Kyle Halehale, Shane Healy, John Matkin, Devan Mendiolaan, Tony Moon, Travis Nicklaw, Eduardo Pedemont, Nathan Sablan,
