Asian Cup: China’s Feng Xiaoting dropped to Guangzhou Evergrande reserves for mistake in loss to Iran
- Defender was substituted just 10 minutes after error led to Sardar Azmoun setting up Mehdi Taremi’s opener on the way to a 3-0 win
- Speculation surrounds teammate Wu Lei’s future as Chinese-owned Espanyol announce they will sign Chinese striker
The aftermath of China’s national team losing to Iran in the AFC Asian Cup continues to be felt.
According to the latest reports, Guangzhou Evergrande defender Feng Xioating has been dropped to the Chinese Super League club’s reserve side after being blamed for the mistake that led to Iran’s Mehdi Taremi opening the scoring in their 3-0 win.
The defender, who played more than 70 times for his country and in 26 of his club’s 30 league matches last season, was beaten by Iran forward Sardar Azmoun who set up the scorer in the 18th minute.
Feng was substituted by head coach Marcello Lippi after just 28 minutes of the match.
The 33-year-old centre back had been a doubt for the game and is reported to have played with painkillers.
Lippi was critical of his players after the loss in his final game in charge of China.
I was really hoping to end this experience in a better way, but you cannot make these kind of mistakes,” he said.
“We had a good Asian Cup and played some good games but I find it unacceptable to commit these types of errors.
“I thank my players for their efforts, but not for what they did tonight.
“I’m a bit angry, this was just a lack of concentration. I knew they were stronger than us. I was expecting a tough match but you cannot give such gifts to a team like Iran.”
China had already made headlines for the wrong reasons at this Asian Cup after their players were forced to cover up tattoos with long sleeves despite the heat in the United Arab Emirates.
This demotion to the reserves comes amid rumours on Chinese social media that Feng was among several China players to bet against their own team against Iran.
The rumours have been circulating with WeChat screenshots claiming to be a former player telling a friend that four players gambled on an Iran win.
While many of Feng’s teammates have returned to China after exiting the continental competition, Wu Lei has not.
Reports from the Shanghai media have him travelling to Germany to get surgery for the shoulder injury he sustained on national team duty.
However, there may be more to his trip to Europe according to further reports that suggest he will sign for Spanish La Liga side Espanyol.
The Chinese-owned side announced they would confirm the signing of a Chinese striker later on Sunday, with many assuming that this could only be the Shanghai SIPG forward who won last season’s golden boot in the Chinese Super League.
Chinese fans appear to be taken with the idea, with users of football app Dongqiudi heavily favouring Espanyol to beat Real Madrid following the potential move’s emergence.
Support for Espanyol jumped from 44 per cent of users backing them to win to 83 per cent in little over an hour.
Feng’s clubmates Zheng Zhi, Gao Lin and Zhang Linpeng were given medals by Guangzhou Evergrande for their efforts at the Asian Cup.
The tournament concludes on February 1.
