China replaces coach amid poor World Cup qualifying campaign

By: The Associated Press Posted: 3:25 AM CST Friday, Dec. 3, 2021 Last Modified: 5:48 AM CST Friday, Dec. 3, 2021

BEIJING (AP) — China’s national men’s soccer team has replaced Li Tie as head coach with the country struggling to qualify for next year’s World Cup.

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BEIJING (AP) — China’s national men’s soccer team has replaced Li Tie as head coach with the country struggling to qualify for next year’s World Cup.

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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 03/12/2021 (1717 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

BEIJING (AP) — China’s national men’s soccer team has replaced Li Tie as head coach with the country struggling to qualify for next year’s World Cup.

The Chinese Football Association said Friday that Li had resigned and was being replaced by fellow former national team player Li Xiaopeng.

China is fifth in a six-team World Cup qualifying group with five points from six games. Only the top two teams qualify automatically for next year’s tournament in Qatar and there are four matches left to play.

Li Xiaopeng, speaks during a ceremony when he was newly-appointed the head coach of Wuhan Zall Football Club, in Wuhan in central China's Hubei province Sunday, Dec. 27, 2020. The Chinese Football Association said Friday, Dec 3, 2021, that the national men's soccer team coach Li Tie had resigned with the country struggling to qualify for next year's World Cup. Li Tie was replaced by fellow former national team player Li Xiaopeng. (Chinatopix Via AP)

China has appeared in just one World Cup in its history and Li had been facing growing calls to stand down after a disappointing qualifying campaign, although the team managed a 1-1 draw against Australia last month.

Li replaced Marcello Lippi, one of several foreign coaches hired by China recently, including Bora Milutinovic, who led China to the 2002 World Cup in which both Li Tie and Li Xiaopeng played.

Despite calls from president and head of the ruling Communist Party Xi Jinping for China to become a football superpower, the men’s team currently ranks 74th in the world.