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Chinese Football Association (CFA)
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Marcello Lippi happy to sign on to lead China to 2022 World Cup after building team for future

Italian boss willing to add another three years to his contract, but 2019 Asian Cup remains the immediate priority

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Head coach Marcello Lippi looks on before China’s final game in the 2017 East Asian Championships. Photo: EPA
Chan Kin-wa
Italian Marcello Lippi would welcome a second chance to lead China to the World Cup finals after an unsuccessful mission to Russia 2018.

In an exclusive interview published in Friday’s Chengdu Commercial Daily, Lippi revealed he is willing in principle to accept an extension of his existing contract by three more years to include the 2022 Qatar World Cup qualifying campaign.

“My existing contract runs until January 2019 at the completion of the Asian Cup finals,” said Lippi, who is back home for the Christmas holidays.

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“They offered me another three-year contract until the end of the 2022 World Cup finals in Qatar, which means I can lead the team for the qualification tournament.
Head coach Marcello Lippi watches China’s final 2018 World Cup qualifying game against Qatar. Photo: AFP
Head coach Marcello Lippi watches China’s final 2018 World Cup qualifying game against Qatar. Photo: AFP

“I would like to accept it, but since my current contract still has more than one year left on it, there may be changes of the situation during this period. Let’s see what will happen in the next couple of months.”

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This is the first time the World Cup-winning manager has spoken about his future as China boss beyond the 2019 Asian Cup finals, according to the newspaper.

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