On May 14, the AFC announced through official channels that the 2023 Asian Cup, which was originally scheduled to be held in China, was held in a different location. This result will undoubtedly have an impact on the next work of the Chinese team. Although the Chinese team did not have the task of this year after reaching the final stage of the Qatar World Cup, the preparation of the national team is still significant in view of the fact that the results of the Asian Cup are closely related to the competitive interests of the 2026 World Preliminary Tournament.
The answer to the question about the current coach Li Xiaopeng's stay needs to be clarified as soon as possible, so that the team can find the right direction as soon as possible and invest in the new cycle to prepare. It is understood that since the end of the national football team at the end of March this year, after the end of the 12 rounds, so far, the team management has not publicly given a statement on the current national football coaching team to stay, which also led to Li Xiaopeng's personal temporary exposure to some kind of embarrassment.
After the 2023 Asian Cup was confirmed to be held, although the Chinese team, as one of the 12 teams that advanced to the 2nd stage of the Qatar World Preliminary Round of 12 and the Asian Cup Qualifier, justifiably advanced to the final stage of the Asian Cup, because the identity of the host team no longer existed, it was affected by the international ranking falling to 10th in Asia, and could only participate in next year's Asian Cup as a team in the 2nd or even 3rd bracket.
According to the opening plan (final draft) reported by the Chinese Football Association to the higher sports management department on May 16, the new season of the Chinese Super League is scheduled to open on June 3. The FIFA and AFC calendars show that the latest international matchday cycle will be arranged from May 30 to June 14, which means that the national football team will not arrange training and competitions during this cycle. According to the competition plan, the Chinese Football Association and the China Football Federation Preparatory Group are expected to arrange five rounds of FA Cup matches or professional leagues in September, so due to this impact, the national football team may not arrange training and competitions during the international match day cycle of the month. Since only these two international matchday cycles remain before the start of the Qatar World Cup, the national men's football team is likely to have no event task this year in the case of the U23 national football team confirming to go to Japan to participate in the East Asian Cup.
But for a national team, it is not normal to have no training or competition for more than half a year. So far, the AFC has not changed its plans for the match schedule, except for confirming the relocation of the 2023 Asian Cup. After the end of the World Preliminary Tournament journey in Qatar, the Chinese team objectively needs to undergo an update. Even if the team is affected by objective factors such as the epidemic and cannot implement the international warm-up match in the short term, it still needs the necessary preparation plan. "Leaderless" is obviously inappropriate. In this case, whether Li Xiaopeng's team will stay or retire, it is necessary to make a clear statement as soon as possible.
On May 16, some media reported that "the national football team will most likely choose a new head coach." However, at present, the Chinese Football Association has not received such confirmation information. It should be noted that the appointment of Li Xiaopeng's team was implemented under the leadership of the national football "leadership working group" led by the sports management department, so even if the change of coach is confirmed, it needs to be implemented by the team management through strict procedures. From this point of view, the decision-making power around this matter is not in the Chinese Football Association, or the Chinese Football Association is also waiting.
It is understood that when the team management chose Li Xiaopeng, it was clear that under normal circumstances, the national football team did not change the coach in the short term, which was consistent with the situation of the national women's football team choosing Shui Qingxia as the coach.
However, as of now, the team management has not given a precise explanation for Li Xiaopeng's whereabouts. Li Xiaopeng has not even received a notice to "report on the work of leading the team in the last 4 rounds of the top 12 competitions". In other words, Li Xiaopeng himself has no exact answer as to whether he will remain in office or leave office. Strictly speaking, Li Xiaopeng is still the manager of the national football team, so should he continue to carry out various preparations for the next stage of the team's preparations?
Text/Beijing Youth Daily reporter Xiao Zhao