bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

sponsorType

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

Jonathan White

China men’s national team manager Marcello Lippi confirmed on Monday he will not continue in his role after the AFC Asian Cup in the UAE in January.
It had been speculated Lippi would renegotiate with the Chinese Football Association after the tournament to lead China during their qualifying campaign for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. But the 70-year-old has put those rumours to bed after confirming he turned down a four-year contract extension.
Lippi has not ruled out coaching another national team “closer to home” and he could return as Italy boss, a role where he won the 2006 World Cup.
Now, the US$28 million dollar question – Lippi’s reported annual salary including contributions from former club Guangzhou Evergrande – is: who will replace him and face the thankless task of trying to get China to their second World Cup?
US$28 million a year China boss Marcello Lippi second only to Manchester United’s Jose Mourinho as best paid

#CSL2018 Happy birthday to Li Xiaopeng, the head coach of Shandong Luneng. pic.twitter.com/GoypbAD36F
— Football China (@footballchina) 20 June 2018

<![CDATA[// ><!]]>

Li Xiaopeng
The 43-year-old has been linked with replacing Lippi in Chinese media and while his dismal record in charge of the women’s national team is a mark against him, the Shandong Luneng manager is arguably the strongest candidate for manager of the year. His side are third in the Chinese Super League and into the Chinese FA Cup final, where they play Beijing Guoan. Qualification for the AFC Champions League is guaranteed and all of this has been achieved with a squad that is not too different from the one with which Felix Magath flirted with relegation last season.

Zlatko Dalic
Croatia are the flavour of the month at the Chinese FA’s headquarters and a move for the man who took the side so close to glory in Russia this summer cannot be ruled out. Whether he would take it is a different matter entirely. Dalic recently rebuffed an approach from a Chinese Super League side to concentrate on taking his national team to the 2020 European Championships.

Fabio Cannavaro
The Guangzhou Evergrande manager was Lippi’s captain during Italy’s World Cup win in Germany and his nascent coaching career has centred on China. The 45-year-old is in his second stint at Tianhe Stadium following a seven-month run in the 2015 season and could win the league this season. The jury remains firmly out, though and his prime achievement so far is securing AFC Champions League qualification with newly-promoted Tianjin Quanjian last season. Evergrande removing themselves from the contract situation after Lippi would lengthen his odds even further.

Vitor Pereira
Similarly to Cannavaro, if he can guide his Shanghai SIPG side to the CSL title then Pereira’s stock will rise enough to be considered for the China national team role. Ending Guangzhou Evergrande’s run of championships will be an achievement that many bigger names have failed to manage and he has also got the very best out of Wu Lei, something the national team need but so often fail to see.

Guus Hiddink
The experienced Dutchman has signed on to coach China’s under-23 side ahead of the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. It would not be crazy for the CFA to consider him taking charge of the full national team on top of that. However, he is older than Lippi and most of his recent roles have been short term.

Gao Hongbo
Better the devil you know and a third stint for the 52-year-old former China international striker is not out of the question. He was in charge before Lippi came on to salvage their World Cup campaign and from 2009-2011. Gao also served as assistant manager for two years and has worked in the national youth set-up. The most experienced man for the job is currently with Beijing Enterprises in China League One

Sven-Goran Eriksson
The Swede has just penned a six-month deal with the Philippines national team but that is also only until the end of the AFC Asian Cup. He has history in China having guided Shanghai SIPG to second place in 2015, as well as time with Guangzhou R&F and second tier Shenzhen FC. Eriksson’s international acumen with England and the Ivory Coast has to make him a name to be considered.

O Tianjin Quanjian se despede de Shen Xiangfu. O técnico comandará o Sub-25 chinês que ficará em treinamento até o final do mês de dezembro. pic.twitter.com/V0NmoZMsY7
— Leonardo Hartung (@HartungLeo) 5 October 2018

<![CDATA[// ><!]]>

Shen Xiangfu
The former China international is a mainstay of the age-group teams of the national set-up and is in charge of the group of 55 players at under-25 level that have been sent to military camp. He also has a great deal of experience managing teams in the Chinese Super League, most recently as caretaker of Tianjin Quanjian before going on to take over the under-25s.

Bora Milutinovic
The Serbian will forever be lauded as the man who took China to their only World Cup in 2002, the fifth nation he reached the competition with. At 74, he has not taken a full-time coaching role for some years but there are those who think that he should be offered first refusal of a job that he has proved to be the most successful at. An unlikely appointment even if it would please the more nostalgic of social media posters.

China bans 73 people from all football for life, hits 13 teams with fines, loss of points

Chinese under-23 football team receive rapturous welcome home after AFC Asian Cup run

Chinese under-23 team win credit for ‘igniting new hope’ despite Asian Cup loss to Japan

China football fans set to flock to Saudi Arabia to support under-23 team in Asian Cup final

Chinese Football Association (CFA)

Who replaces Marcello Lippi as China manager? Zlatko Dalic, Fabio Cannavaro and other World Cup qualification possibilities

China coach Marcello Lippi watches the match against Wales at the 2018 China Cup in March 2018. Photo: AP

Football Soccer - Chelsea Press Conference - Parc des Princes, Paris, France - 15/2/16 Chelsea manager Guus Hiddink during the press conference Action Images via Reuters / Lee Smith Livepic EDITORIAL USE ONLY.

In this photograph taken October 6, 2016, China's national football coach Gao Hongbo watches his team play during their World Cup football qualification match between China and Syria at Shanxi Stadium in Xian. Gao announced his resignation after a 2-0 defeat to Uzbekistan left the perennially underachieving side's hopes of reaching Russia 2018 hanging by a thread, reports said on October 12. / AFP PHOTO / STRINGER / China OUT

(FILES) This file photo taken on May 15, 2018 shows Tianjin Quanjian's head coach Fabio Cannavaro gesturing during the AFC Champions League round of 16 football match between China's Guangzhou Evergrande and Tianjin Quanjian in Guangzhou in China's southern Guangdong province. - The Chinese Super League (CSL) is in the throes of the most closely contested title race in its history with just three points separating the top four as they approach the home straight. Beijing Guoan and Shanghai SIPG share the top spot on equal points with the two sides meeting at the end of September 2018 in what is shaping up to be a championship six-pointer. (Photo by STR / AFP) / China OUT

Shanghai SIPG's head coach Vitor Pereira reacts during the AFC Champions League round of 16 football match between China's Shinghai SIPG and Japan's Kashima Antlers in Shanghai on May 16, 2018. / AFP PHOTO / - / China OUT

China national soccer team coach Bora Milutinovic talks to the press at the end of training at the Seogwipo World Cup stadium in Seogwipo on Jeju Island, South Korea 07 June 2002. China meets Brazil in their next match of the first round of the 2002 FIFA World Cup Korea/Japan, on 08 June in Seogwipo. AFP PHOTO/Robyn BECK

Former England football manager Sven-Goran Eriksson speaks at a news conference by Chinese Super League (CSL) club Shanghai East Asia in Shanghai on November 18, 2014. Eriksson was unveiled by cash-rich Shanghai East Asia as their new coach on November 18, on a contract that reportedly puts him among the top earners in football management. CHINA OUT AFP PHOTO

epa06881756 Croatia's coach Zlatko Dalic reacts during the FIFA World Cup 2018 semi final soccer match between Croatia and England in Moscow, Russia, 11 July 2018. (RESTRICTIONS APPLY: Editorial Use Only, not used in association with any commercial entity - Images must not be used in any form of alert service or push service of any kind including via mobile alert services, downloads to mobile devices or MMS messaging - Images must appear as still images and must not emulate match action video footage - No alteration is made to, and no text or image is superimposed over, any published image which: (a) intentionally obscures or removes a sponsor identification image; or (b) adds or overlays the commercial identification of any third party which is not officially associated with the FIFA World Cup) EPA-EFE/FELIPE TRUEBA EDITORIAL USE ONLY

Sport

China


Italian World Cup winner confirms he will step down after Asian Cup in UAE next January
Shandong Luneng and former women’s team boss Li Xiaopeng linked



Italian World Cup winner confirms he will step down after Asian Cup in UAE next January – here are the candidates to take over


Fifa World Cup 2022

Who replaces Marcello Lippi as China manager? Zlatko Dalic, Fabio Cannavaro and other World Cup qualification possibilities

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;} Italian World Cup winner confirms he will step down after Asian Cup in UAE next January Shandong Luneng and former women’s team boss Li Xiaopeng linked

Italian World Cup winner confirms he will step down after Asian Cup in UAE next January

Shandong Luneng and former women’s team boss Li Xiaopeng linked