Recently, our national soccer team played two friendly matches against New Zealand, which ended with a draw and a loss. 33 years later, they lost again to this team from Oceania, breaking a 41-year unbeaten streak on the road. The head coach for this tournament is Jankovic, who is leading this team for the first time to the Asian Cup and the Preliminary Round. Facing the challenge of New Zealand, the performance of the national soccer team is worrying. So how can they make a qualitative leap?
Currently, our national soccer team is ranked 80th and New Zealand is ranked 105th, with a gap of up to 25 places between the two teams. Due to one consecutive draw and one loss, the national soccer team will deduct at least five points. According to the latest world ranking released by FIFA next month, the national soccer team will slip to 81st place, but still manage to stay in the top 12 in Asia.
It is reported that the group draw for the new Asian Cup finals will take place in May this year. The AFC will be graded according to the latest rankings released by FIFA in April. The grading rules have now been finalized and include hosts Qatar, Japan, Iran, South Korea, Australia, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, the UAE, Oman, China, Syria and Vietnam in the first two stages, as well as Lebanon, who also made it through the last Top 40, joining the 13 teams that advanced from the second stage of the qualifying rounds in the latter two stages.
The current ranking bins are listed below:
Tier 1 (seeded): Qatar, Japan, Iran, South Korea, Australia, Saudi Arabia.
Second gear: Iraq, UAE, Oman, China, Syria, Vietnam.
Tranche 3: Lebanon, Uzbekistan, Jordan, Bahrain, Palestine, Kyrgyzstan.
Fourth tranche: India, Tajikistan, Thailand, Malaysia, Hong Kong, China, Indonesia
Currently, the classification of Vietnam and Lebanon is in doubt.Vietnam did not participate in friendly matches on international days in March. Lebanon has only one match, which will be against Oman. The difference between Vietnam and Lebanon is 21 points. No matter what score Lebanon beat Oman by, they will not be able to overtake Vietnam in the ranking before the group draw, so Vietnam has locked the second slot, which is good news for the national football team.
The national soccer team maintained its position in the top 12 in Asia, locking up second place. Being not the host team and not being able to be seeded in the lottery, they were lucky to avoid Iraq, Syria and Vietnam. The national soccer team can avoid continuing to lose face when they meet their opponents again.
Not surprisingly, the above scores will be specific to the Asian Cup. The ideal score for the national soccer team will be announced in advance. It would be best to draw host Qatar in the first slot. This team is limited and has started to go downhill. Kyrgyzstan would be best drawn in the third slot, which is the weakest in this bracket. India would be best drawn in the fourth slot, where the national team has a clear advantage.
The Asian Cup will be held from January 12 to February 10, 2024, according to Qatar Football Association officials. The final day is the first day of the Lunar New Year. I wonder how the national soccer team will perform.
