On August 2, the AFC officially unveiled the 2026 World Cup quota and tournament arrangements for the Asian region, revealing that the future Asian region will have six direct qualification places, two play-off through places and one intercontinental play-off place. Senior soccer commentator Ma Dexing pointed out in the article, for the national football team, the first task is to solve the problem of Li Xiaopeng's destination, if Jankovic took over, then the pros and cons of the same.
Recall that Jankovic had been seen as a possible successor after the departure of former national team head coach Li Tie last November. Now, Jankovic has once again become the favorite to be the head coach of the national football team after winning the third place in the East Asian Cup with the national football selection team. However, Li Xiaopeng is still the head coach of the national soccer team.
The most urgent task at present may be the relevant parties to give a clear statement, at least should Li Xiaopeng and his coaching team to show respect. If Li Xiaopeng confirmed to stay, the national team construction should start immediately; if confirmed to leave, it needs to be clearly explained to the public. Li Xiaopeng's stay and go once clear, the National Football Association can start looking for a new head coach.
If Li Xiaopeng stepped down, Yankovic took over the biggest advantage is to be able to better coordinate the national team, the U23 national football team and the national Olympic team personnel relations, to solve the conflict of personnel. However, in the history of the national football team, there have been many times that the phenomenon of "one shoulder, two picks" has ended in failure. From Horton to Zhu Guanghu, to Duy and Frado, the national football team in the construction of the national team has left many lessons. In addition, after the end of the league, the national team and the U23 national football team will start training, a head coach how to effectively organize the training of different teams, is also a real problem.
Ma Dexing concluded that in the face of the new cycle of the 2026 World Cup, the primary task of the national football team is to maintain "stability", avoid "tossing", and firm direction, which is the way of the development of the national football team.
