Team China steels itself for tough test

Despite being outranked in almost every metric of the game by the Samurai Blue, Team China refuses to give up fighting, as it heads to Japan to kick off the third stage of the Asian qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup.

When the Chinese men's team lines up against the continental powerhouse at the Saitama Stadium 2002 on Thursday, it will be very much the underdog. Japan has 20 players on its roster currently plying their trade in elite European leagues, while China has none. The overall estimated market value of the Japanese roster has exceeded 276 million euros ($305 million), about 25 times that of Team China, according to German website transfermarkt.com.

Japan is currently ranked 18th, as Asia's top side, by FIFA, whereas China sits way back at No 87 in the world and 13th in Asia.

Team China's last win over Japan dates as far back as 1998. Since then, over the past 26 years, it has lost eight times in all 14 encounters against its neighbor.

It's safe to say that Team China will open the new qualifying round in the hardest possible way, yet the team has vowed to at least put up a fight.

And it has to, should the underachieving program still harbor a slim hope of reaching FIFA's marquee tournament again, following its sole appearance at the 2002 event hosted by Japan and South Korea.

"Japan is already a world-class team. We are lagging far behind them on paper for sure. But, it doesn't mean that we should just give up," Wu Lei, Team China's leading scorer of the current qualifying campaign, said after the squad's final training session in Dalian, Liaoning province, on Sunday.

"Each of us cherishes the opportunity to compete in the final-18 stage very much. It will be a great test for us. We will definitely give everything and at least put up a fight. We'll see where we go from there," said Wu, who's scored five goals across five qualifiers.

After advancing as a lucky survivor from the last pool stage, thanks to a thin head-to-head edge over its second-round group opponent Thailand, Team China was drawn into a "group of death" with Japan, Australia, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Indonesia in the third stage.

Only the top two from each of the three six-team groups in this phase secure direct qualification berths for the 2026 Cup finals, which will be jointly held by the United States, Canada and Mexico.

The chances of Team China securing a direct ticket are pretty slim at this stage, given the vast difference in quality between the mighty trio of Japan, Australia and Saudi Arabia — that all made it to the 2022 tournament in Qatar — and the rest of the pool.

Sharpening its young roster with 10 quality home-and-away drills, while trying to keep its qualifying hopes alive into the fourth round as one of the best fourth-placed sides seems a more practical goal for Branko Ivankovic's side.

In the fourth phase, known as the continental playoffs, the six teams that finish third and fourth respectively in the third stage will be split into two groups in October next year, with only the winners of each group guaranteed the final two spots at the 2026 Cup finals.

To stay alive a year from now, Team China has to stand its ground against Japan in Saitama on Thursday, and at home against Saudi Arabia on Sept 10.

"Of course, we did a lot of preparations for Japan, especially in defense. We are expecting a tough time, but we will hold our lines as strong as we can," defensive midfielder Wang Shangyuan said at the team's 10-day training camp in Dalian.

"Physically and mentally, all of our players are in good shape. We are ready to deploy a firm defense and help each other," he said.

Coached by Croatian tactician Ivankovic, Team China's resilient and tenacious performance in a narrow 1-0 away defeat to group leader South Korea in its final second-stage match in June served up encouraging signs that it might be able to contain the aggressive Japanese side as well.

However, after sailing through the last stage with six straight wins, Japan poses an even more daunting challenge for Ivankovic's men, having netted 24 goals while conceding none.

A regular World Cup participant, Japan stunned Spain and Germany to reach the round-of-16 in Qatar and has a European-based core, bolstered by star winger Kaoru Mitoma and midfielder Wataru Endo of English Premier League clubs Brighton and Liverpool, respectively.

Ivankovic, however, remains upbeat that the side can return to Dalian from Saitama unscathed.

"We're not going to go into any game with our hands up. We have hope, and we will stick to our plan and to try to make it happen no matter what," he said in an earlier interview with national broadcaster China Central Television.

Standing alongside veteran striker Wu and midfielder Wang, three naturalized players — namely Brazilian-born attacking combo Alan and Fei Nanduo (aka Fernando), and England-born centerback Jiang Guangtai (Tyias Browning) — are expected to help provide a variety, depth and intensity that Ivankovic will lean on to pull off the challenge.

In his last international match against Japan, the Croatian guided a brave Oman side to a thrilling 1-0 win over the Japanese in an Asian qualifier for the 2022 World Cup.

sunxiaochen@chinadaily.com.cn