The Chinese Football Association (CFA) recently made a high-profile announcement that former celebrity coach Ivan Ivanovic would be taking charge of the national team. However, the Daily News suggests that our impression of Ivan as a "familiar face in Chinese soccer" may be too hasty.
More than a decade has passed since Ivan's last foray into Chinese soccer, and there have been several changes in the player lineup. Almost all of the players who have not crossed paths with Ivan are of the new generation born after 1993. Even if Ivan knows something about Chinese soccer, it is limited to the two dozen or so international players in the national team during the last 12-team tournament. Therefore, we should not put the label of "familiar with Chinese soccer" on Ivan too early.
On March 11, the national team will launch its preparation for the match against Singapore. The first match will be played away from home on March 21, leaving the new coach Ivanovic with only 10 days to prepare for the match. The second match will be played at home in Tianjin on March 26th, again under intense pressure to prepare. For Ivankovic and his coaching team, how to quickly integrate and guide the team in a short period of time has become their primary challenge. At the same time, how to quickly grasp the strengths and characteristics of the players has also become their second major challenge.
The first half of the Chinese Super League (CSL) season featured two 18-day breaks, providing plenty of time for the national team to train and play. But with Jankovic stepping down after the Asian Cup, the new head coach will have a tough task ahead of him to turn the Chinese team around in a month.
