The national soccer team is expected to play with the world champion Qatar World Cup winners? This topic has stirred up heated debate in the Chinese soccer world. Until the afternoon of May 18, the suspense was revealed - the Football Association unveiled the national football team's tournament schedule for June.
Argentina is not listed in the FA's announcement that the national football team will face Myanmar and Palestine on June 16 and 20 at the Barracuda Bay Professional Football Stadium in Dalian.
Despite the early rumors, fans still feel a sense of loss when the truth comes out. After all, it's hard to cross the gap from Argentina's glory to Myanmar and Palestine.
The power of Argentina needs no elaboration. In the Qatar World Cup, the Pampas Eagles went all the way against the odds, and Lionel Messi finally fulfilled his 36-year dream by winning the trophy. As a result, Argentina topped the FIFA World Cup.
What about Myanmar and Palestine? The former is ranked 160th and the latter 93rd in the world, and they are often the "underdogs" when it comes to the national soccer team. In the past 20 years, Palestine has never beaten the national soccer team.
According to the media, the organizers of the Argentine Bank of China had contacted the Football Association in the hope of facilitating a warm-up between the two countries' teams, but the Association's established schedule was so tight that the two sides failed to reach an agreement.
It is inevitable that fans will regret missing out on a match against the World Cup champions, but Argentina will still have the opportunity to come to China in the future. Argentine media outlet TYC Sports confirmed that the Pampas Eagles will play Australia in Beijing around June 15, then move on to Indonesia, where they will play again on June 18th or 19th. These will be Argentina's last two warm-up matches before the next South American World Cup qualifiers.
It is reported that Argentina's trip to China is scheduled to be officially announced on May 20, the preliminary investment program is "June 15-16, industrial sports, Argentina against Australia".
It is rumored that the trip to China will feature all of Argentina's key players, including King Lionel Messi. What's even more exciting is that the Hercules Cup will also be arriving in China with the team.
Such an arrangement has Chinese fans eagerly awaiting. However, looking back at Chinese soccer itself, the performance of the national football team is also worthy of attention.
The national soccer team seems to have disappeared since its loss in the World Preliminary 12 last year. The team fielded a young lineup in the East Asian Cup. It wasn't until February this year that the national soccer team returned to the public eye, losing both matches against New Zealand. Now, with Jankovic at the helm and legendary players such as Shao Jiayi, Zheng Zhi and Chen Tao joining the coaching team, the national soccer team is stepping into a new era. The friendly matches against Myanmar and Palestine are an opportunity to show the team's new style.
In recent years, Chinese soccer has fallen into a deep depression. The national team has failed to qualify for the World Cup with naturalized players, and the foundations of professional soccer have been shaken. Commercial value and reputation have slipped, scandals and turmoil have followed, and it would not be an exaggeration to describe it as a dark time.
In the midst of adversity, life remains the same. The most important preparation goal for the national soccer team is the Asian Cup next January. The national soccer team, which is in the same group as Tajikistan, Lebanon and Qatar, has only six months to prepare for the tournament.
Tajikistan is ranked 109th in the world and Lebanon is 99th, which is in the same class as Myanmar and Palestine, so perhaps that's why the national soccer team chose these two weak teams as warm-up opponents.
Ideal is very rich, the reality is very bone. For the current national football team, winning the championship is important, but to find their own positioning, for the actual goal of preparing for war is more critical.
Regret missing the showdown with Argentina? Of course. But Chinese soccer still has a long way to go. Do you still choose to accompany them this time?
