Undoubtedly, Wu Lei shoulders this heavy responsibility. As a veteran in the team, it's not easy for him to maintain his current status, but the situation of having no one to succeed him is really heartbreaking.
Similar to Wang Frost's heartfelt words after his World Cup loss, Wu Lei shared his heartfelt words on the sidelines of the award ceremony. He bluntly stated that the national soccer team is no longer among the second-rate in Asia. Although advancing to the next round (i.e. the last 18 of the qualifiers) is a top priority, he also appeared to have little confidence in the strength of their opponents.
This is not an inferiority complex, nor is it a lack of objectivity. Looking back at the performance of the national football team in the Asian Cup, we can see that it is far from the performance of the United Arab Emirates when it won the championship, and it may not be able to win against such opponents as Tajikistan and Lebanon, which is really unpredictable. In the past, we only feared Japan and South Korea, but now, the will of the people.
Nonetheless, Wu Lei also injected his teammates and fans with a strong dose of confidence. He vowed to do his best to boost morale and show his best form on the field. However, despite the powerful words, the reality is full of challenges. Take Wu Lei as an example, his mistakes in the qualifiers and domestic tournaments are the same, and have almost become the "normal" of his play. Wu Lei's own problems certainly exist, but environmental factors can not be ignored.
International players often lack sufficient opportunity to adapt in the heated atmosphere of the domestic tournament. If they are not fast enough, it becomes difficult for them to grasp the confrontation and transition between offense and defense. No one will feel accustomed to them once they step onto the international field. Speed, physicality, confrontation, every mistake seems inevitable. In addition, the lack of solid fundamentals adds to the problem.
The new coach, Ivankovic, undoubtedly brings a fresh start to the team. However, can these problems be solved by a few coaches and a few months? If there is just a change in the soup, the problems will remain.
