With the fierce competition in the final round of the 20th U17 Asia Cup Qualifying Tournament, a number of key matchups were finalized in the late night of 9th Beijing time. 4 teams from Groups B, E, F, I, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Thailand and Laos, as well as another team from Group C, all followed China's U17s with a record of 3 points and a goal difference of no more than 7 goals. The U17 team of 2006 age group of our country, with the outstanding performance of 6 points and 7 goal difference, succeeded in the final round. Meanwhile, the breakthrough of the 2003 age group U19 national football team also greatly inspired the national soccer team, and even the whole Chinese soccer world.
On the afternoon of the 9th, our U17s lost 1-3 against Australia U17s. However, after this loss, the crucial battle for the line in several other groups continued. In the matches concerning the fate of our U17s, Thailand lost 0-3 to Vietnam, Indonesia lost 1-5 to Malaysia, Bangladesh lost 0-4 to Yemen, and Qatar thrashed Lebanon 4-1. In the end, the 2nd place teams in each group accumulated 3 points, but their goal difference was not as good as our U17 team. According to the tournament system, the best team among the 6 2nd place teams in the group will join the 10 top teams in the group to enter the final round of the U17 Asian Cup next year. This also means that, regardless of the results of the final round of the qualifying round, our U17 team has already secured the qualification.
After the national football team failed to reach the final round of the World Cup for five consecutive sessions, the U19 national football team of the 2003 age group and the U17 national football team of the 2006 age group broke into the final round of the U20 Asian Cup and the U17 Asian Cup successively. These two national youth teams not only successfully completed their annual tasks, but also injected new vitality into Chinese soccer. Being able to advance to the final round of the Asian Cup for their respective age groups not only ensures the integrity of the team, but also provides a broader space for the development of Chinese soccer.
In the long run, the development of these two teams and their age-appropriate players provides more talent reserves for the future of Chinese soccer and helps to improve the international competitiveness of national teams. It is worth mentioning that after China's women's soccer team regained the Asian Cup title, the men's national team, especially the youth team, is also making continuous efforts to gradually get on the right track and become the future hope of Chinese soccer.
