After the last round of fierce battle, fans are still confused about the belonging of the top 12. Led by Li Tie and Li Xiaopeng, our soccer team failed to break through the encircling net of Japan, Saudi Arabia, and Vietnam, and once again had no chance with the World Cup. Now, the national team is once again standing at the crossroads of the World Cup. A new round of World Cup qualifiers is about to kick off. This time, China's soccer team can bring surprise to the fans?On November 16th at 8:30 pm, CCTV will be live broadcast to witness the Chinese men's football team's departure again. Facing the Southeast Asian powerhouse Thailand, what are our chances of winning? Let's wait and see.
Our team was not ill-fated in this World Cup qualifying campaign. South Korea has always been a big problem for us. In recent years, the strength of the two teams, Thailand and Singapore, has increased dramatically. Judging from the comparison of strengths in this group, South Korea will undoubtedly secure the first place in the group, while our team and Thailand will fight for the second place in the group. Although the Singaporean team is weaker on paper, they are also expected to compete for the second place in the group considering the gap between China and Thailand. Facing the challenge of Thailand, our team's first match is crucial. Who loses and who wins is directly related to the possibility of advancing to the second round. There are three points to watch in this match, let's analyze them one by one.
Watch 1: Can we wash away the shame of 1:5?
When it comes to Thai soccer, Chinese fans naturally think of that 1:5 fiasco. Back then, Thailand's youth team beat an almost full-strength Chinese team at home in China, and the difference in score was unbelievable. The victory was very significant for Thai soccer, while it was a great humiliation for the Chinese men's soccer team. Nowadays, with the decline of China's soccer strength and the rise of Thailand's soccer, the Thai team is no longer afraid of our team. So, in this China-Thailand confrontation, can our team repay Thailand's victory with 1 win and 5 points?
Point 2: Can newcomers make their mark?
Under Jankovic, our men's soccer team seems to lack the character of the past and the overall strength. Jankovic seems to lack enough gumption to almost change the training roster and match lineups. From the performance of several games, the team has almost no bright spots. The veterans lacked passion on the field and were always passive, and even against Vietnam no change was seen. As a result, many fans expect new players to emerge. However, according to media reports, Jankovic did not seem to give much chance to the new players.
Watch 3: Can Akerson break his goal drought?
After the naturalization of the Brazilian players, the heavy responsibility of our men's soccer team falls on the veteran Eckerson. However, as a center forward, Eckerson has not scored for China for a long time. Whether in official or friendly matches, Ixon rarely scored and even had difficulty in getting a shot on goal. As far as I can remember, after joining the national team, Ixon has rarely scored against stronger teams. Prior to that, he only seemed to score against weaker teams like Maldives. Now that the World Qualifiers are upon us once again, will he be able to break his goal drought and set up our team's victory over Thailand?
Considering that this is an away game and the first match of the World Qualifier, both sides will be extra cautious. However, if our team can play to their strengths, a draw or even a win is possible. However, a win by a large margin is less likely, and the predicted score of this match could be 1:0 or 2:1 in our favor.
