China's soccer world has recently been blessed with a spring rain event, with the presence of a soccer heavyweight bringing long-lost glory to the land. The celebrity is none other than current FIFA President Gianni Infantino, who left a time-spanning photo with our soccer legend Captain Sun Jihai. On social media, President Infantino and Sun Jihai posed for a close photo with big smiles, as if telling the eternal feelings of the soccer world. President Infantino's arrival was to participate in the strategic launch of the 2025 Club World Cup Global Official Partner, a move that immediately inspired fans and media to marvel at Sun Jihai's continued grace and grandeur.
On social media, President Infantino fondly recalled, "I was delighted to see Sun Jihai again in Shanghai. He is a symbol of Chinese soccer, having led his team to write glory on the green fields of the World Cup, the only glorious tour of our soccer so far!" Infantino's arrival has stirred the hopes of fans, who expect the FIFA head honcho to bring good tidings of victory to the Chinese team that will be playing in Bahrain, helping the men's soccer team to return to the long-awaited World Cup.
In order to help the Chinese men's football team to realize the dream of the World Cup, FIFA can be said to be well-intentioned. The decision to expand the World Cup to 48 teams has undoubtedly paved the way of hope for the rise of our men's soccer team. 2026, the World Cup stage will be even wider, FIFA generously gave Asia 8.5 valuable places, of which 8 are directly promoted, 1 through the play-offs. FIFA is well aware of the strength and depth of the Asian national soccer teams, ranking fifth for a long time, and therefore has high hopes for the men's football team, which 8 places seem to be tailor-made for our men's football team.
However, our men's soccer team suffered a setback in the fierce competition of Asian soccer, dropping to ninth place. Now, the men's soccer team has risen to the occasion with 18 matches remaining, aiming no longer to blindly pursue the top two spots in the group, but pragmatically pinning its hopes on advancing to the play-offs as the fourth-place finisher in the group, in a bid to qualify for the World Cup.
After defeating Indonesia at home, the hope of the men's soccer team is gradually blossoming like a bud in the spring breeze. As long as the men's soccer team defeats Bahrain and Indonesia in their upcoming matches, home and away, advancing to the play-offs as the fourth place in the group will no longer be a far-fetched dream. I expect that under the wise guidance of Coach Ivankovic, the men's soccer team will be able to realize the great dream of advancing to the 2026 World Cup as soon as possible, living up to FIFA's deepest expectations and the ardent hopes of thousands of fans.
