Chinese men's soccer team embarks on voyage fraught with uncertainty

NANNING, CHINA, March 25 (Xinhua) -- CHINA lost 1-0 to Uzbekistan on Monday to finish bottom of CHINA Cup, a four-Team tournament that saw them embarking on a voyage where they are still not certain who will control the rudder.

Fabio Cannavaro tenure as CHINESE Team head coach could be short-lived after he guided CHINA to two straight losses at the tournament.

The 45-year-old former Italy skipper, who serves as head coach of CHINESE top flight club Guangzhou Evergrande, hinted that he did not sign a long-term contract with the CHINESE Football Association (CFA).

"After the CHINA Cup tournament, I will continue to discuss with CFA about a lot of things, let us wait to see what will happen. I am in no hurry," he said.

If he cannot reach a agreement with CFA, he will content himself with coaching Evergrande, the Italian said.

The CHINESE Team has been struggling over the past year and he should not be expected to bring significant improvement to the Team over 10 days, Cannavaro said.

"I am no magician and can in no way change the Team in just 10 days," he said.

His predecessor Marcello Lippi proved that only a good coach cannot save CHINA's soccer, according to Cannavaro.

Lippi parted ways with the CHINESE Team following their quarterfinal exit at January's Asian Cup.

"I observed during the Asian Cup that CHINA needs skill and physical fitness in addition to tactics, and what I saw at CHINA Cup confirmed my observation," he said following his side's 1-0 loss to Thailand at the opening match of CHINA Cup.

Cannavaro advised CHINESE football decision-makers to scrap their obsession with World Cup and take a long-term approach to developing soccer.

"CHINA only qualified once for the World Cup finals, in 2002, and that speaks a lot," he said.

"You need to set up a long-term project to pursue this purpose. The project can still operate after the head coach leaves," he said.

He admitted that it involves multiple commitments and is really a hard job to coach CHINA and Evergrande simultaneously.

"But it can also arouse my passion and I would enjoy the challenge," he said.

CHINA will kick off its Asian World Cup qualifiers in September.

The CFA did not confirm if they will hire Cannavaro as head coach of CHINA on a permanent basis.