China fans rage over ‘these players’ after team ends miserable Fifa World Cup qualifiers with Oman defeat
- Li Xiaopeng’s team lose 2-0 in Muscat and finish second from bottom of Group B
- The new coach again opted to cut all naturalised players leaving fans to question what hope there is for the future
China’s miserable Fifa World Cup qualifying campaign has ended as it started, in another disappointing defeat and with more questions than answers over the team’s future.
Li Xiaopeng’s side were easily beaten by Oman in Muscat late on Tuesday night, a result that condemned them to finishing second from bottom in Group B and with one win from 10 matches.
The team have lost three times since his appointment midway through the campaign, including a humiliating 3-1 defeat to Vietnam, and Li has opted to leave out several naturalised players, with four Brazilians, Ai Kesen, Luo Guofu, Fei Nanduo and A Lan, dropped from the latest 25-man squad.
Instead, Li has turned to the likes of Hong Kong-born Dai Wai-tsun, who played the full 90 minutes against Oman.
The attacking midfielder shone in patches in a game where the home side scored in each half through Arshad Al Alawi and Abdullah Fawaz, and China failed to muster a single shot on target.
And Li, who took the hot seat from his former national team colleague Li Tie in December, acknowledged his side had simply not been good enough.
“We delivered something in our attack but our pace was not as fast as the opponents and the result is not unexpected,” the manager said. “But the boys were brave enough to do quite well in the attack which should be recognised.
“All the players worked very hard in the match and have played their best over the last two years. Those who started on the pitch are all fighters and I hope they can face the fact of both win or lose, so that they can start their preparations for the domestic league competition which will start soon.”
