The road to the Round of 12 became clearer as our men's national soccer team beat the Maldives by a lopsided 5-0 scoreline in the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying Asian Round of 40 overnight, with second place in Group A secure as a rock.
The battle for bloodshed clears the gloom
Facing the Maldives, head coach Li Tie boldly implemented a big rotation strategy. Compared with the previous two rounds of the same lineup, the national football team only retained the goalkeeper Yan Junling and striker Wu Lei. Allan, Wu Lei and Zhang Yuning form a new partnership front line, Ji Zhongguo and Artemisia Junmin sit in the midfield, Mingri, Li Ang, Yu Dabao and Li Lei composed of four defenders lineup.
Li Tie's choice is quite forward-looking. The intensive schedule of four days and one game makes the main lineup exhausted, coupled with the risk of injury-prone, this rotation is designed to allow the national football team to explore more tactical combinations in real life, while allowing every player who traveled to the United Arab Emirates to have the opportunity to play, boosting the overall morale.
National soccer team in control of the whole game, multiple points
Throughout the match, the national football team controlled the rhythm, and the five goals were completed by five different attacking players. Liu Binbin scored on his debut and was awarded the best player by AFC. As a side fast horse, Liu Binbin and Wu Xinghan style is similar, Li Tie can be based on their state of mind to decide the first choice. Wu Lei scored 4 goals in three rounds and is undoubtedly the core of the national football team's offense. Zhang Yuning, as Ackerson's replacement in the center forward position, performed moderately well with occasional highlights.
Alan also scored goals, 3 goals in three rounds, a remarkable performance. Li Tie should consider how to play his character in the final round against Syria. Substitute striker Tan Long also scored, at 33 years and 72 days old, he surpassed Feng Xiaoting (33 years and 29 days old) to become the oldest national football player to score his first goal for the national team.
With the victory over the Maldives, the national soccer team (10 points, 11 goal difference) jumped up to second place in the ranking of the second place in the eight groups, and only need to draw with Syria in the final round to qualify for the 12-team tournament. However, the national soccer team is not complacent, and still maintains the strategic thinking of trying to beat the Syrians to prepare for the final round of matches.
Extreme situations, one touch
So far in the 40-team tournament, Kyrgyzstan in Group F has made an early exit, while the second-placed teams in the other seven groups have a chance to advance.
Oman, in Group E, currently has 12 effective points, the highest of the eight groups. They have a good chance of winning the final round against Bangladesh, who are at the bottom of the group. As the final round score does not count for comparison, Oman can get the maximum score of 12 points, which is solidly in the top five.
Currently, the teams in Group A (China), Group B (Jordan), Group C (Iraq or Iran), Group D (Saudi Arabia or Uzbekistan), Group G (Vietnam or the United Arab Emirates), and Group H (Lebanon) are competing for the remaining four second-place spots in the group. Since the national football team in these six groups of second-place teams in the comparison of points and goal difference advantage, which means that the final round of the other five groups only need to have two second place can not win, the national football team even if the loss to the Syrian team may be promoted.
There is only one extreme case in which the national football team could be eliminated, and that is when the national football team loses in the final round and only gets 10 points, with any five of the following six outcomes occurring - Oman with 12 points; Lebanon draws with South Korea to get 11 points; Iran, Uzbekistan, and the UAE all win to become the first team in their respective groups while the second team in their respective groups all get 11 points; Jordan's win over Australia earned them 11 points. When analyzed carefully, except for Jordan's win over Australia, which is more difficult, it is not impossible for the other five results to occur at the same time.
It is an indisputable fact that the national football team has an advantage in the line, the final round to get one point can be out of the line, even if a small loss to the opponent also has a high probability of going out of the line. However, the national football team's consistent strategy of "draw and get out of the line" often leads to accidents. Therefore, under favorable circumstances, the national football team should put aside the burden, and strive to beat the Syrian team in the final round, to lay a good foundation for the morale of the 12 strong match.
Latest Round of the Top 40
Group A Philippines 2:0 Guam, China 5:0 Maldives
Group B Australia 3:0 Nepal, Kuwait 0:0 Jordan
Group C Cambodia 0:10 Iran, Hong Kong 0:1 Iraq
Group D Singapore 0:3 Saudi Arabia, Yemen 0:1 Uzbekistan
Group E Afghanistan 1:2 Oman
Group F Myanmar 1:8 Kyrgyzstan
Group G Malaysia 1:2 Vietnam, Indonesia 0:5 UAE
