China’s Soccer Shame: Goalless Streak Sparks Media Outrage

Director Alexandar Yankovich / Photo=Provided by Gettyimages

After a desperate match, the Chinese national soccer team left a disgraceful historical record.

On the 23rd (Korean time), China lost 0-1 to Qatar in the 3rd round of Group A of the 2023 Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Qatar Asian Cup held at Khalifa International Stadium in Al Rayyan, Qatar.

With this match, China is in danger of being eliminated from the qualifiers with two draws and one loss (2 points) in 3 games, ranking third in the group. In this tournament, the top two teams from each group will automatically advance to the round of 16, and the top four teams among the third-placed teams from each group will also advance to the round of 16.

China has the highest points after Indonesia and Bahrain (3 points) among the third-placed teams in each group. There is still a chance for a miraculous advancement depending on the results of matches in other groups.

It was indeed a desperate match. Qatar, which had already confirmed its advancement to the round of 16, operated a rotation of members on a large scale, but China failed to show a brilliant performance against them. China recorded ten and two effective shots but could not score a single point, exposing its chronic lack of decisiveness again.

This is China’s first time not scoring in the Asian Cup group qualifiers. China has scored at least one goal in the previous 12 Asian Cup group qualifiers.

Chinese media Sohu.com regretted the current situation, calling it a “disgraceful history.” The Beijing Daily said, “China’s elimination is only a matter of time,” adding, “China needs to take a good look at their problems.”

Chinese fans also expressed their anger through comments. They expressed their frustration, saying, “We strongly recommend replacing Director Alexandar Yankovich,” “Director Yankovich is only the MVP in press conferences,” and “Don’t hope for help from heaven if you can’t help yourself.”