Gao Hongbo's dream shattered the soccer world, foreign coaches become the meat and potatoes? What is the way forward for local coaches?
Gao Hongbo's brush with the men's soccer head coaching position does not mean that he is not expected to return to this throne in the future. In this case, the soccer association's selection criteria play a key role. It is reported that the association of the selection and recruitment, the first condition is the identity of foreign coaches, especially from the European coaches are more favored. Gao Hongbo thus encountered a bottleneck in his career development. Within the established framework of the FA, only two coaches remain eligible: Queiroz, who has however accepted a €3 million offer from the African giants; and Ivankovic, who has virtually locked up the men's football manager's throne. According to media personality Qin Yun and other sources, Ivankovic's 1.5 million annual salary offer is just what the FA wants.
Although Ivanovic's appointment seems to be generally recognized, former soccer superstar Fan Zhiyi is skeptical about whether a foreign coach can save Chinese soccer. In a recent interview, Fan mentioned the sudden departure of Lippi, and expressed his views with the words "Chinese soccer still needs local love". He believes that the only way for the Chinese men's soccer team to get out of the dilemma is for the local coaches to continue to learn and progress. Fan Zhiyi's words hit the nail on the head, but also hope that the local coaches can be more outstanding, to realize the independent development of Chinese soccer, so as to be self-sufficient, self-supporting national men's soccer team head coach.
