Chinese newspaper: If he doesn't beat Indonesia, the coach could lose his job immediately

Chinese football is going through a crisis under coach Branko Ivankovic. After 7 matches in charge, he has only helped the team win 1 match, draw 2 matches and lose 4 matches. According to Sohu , the Chinese Football Association (CFA) has considered a last resort if coach Ivankovic cannot help China beat Indonesia in the match on October 15.

"The team must beat Indonesia. If they fail to do so, the coach will likely lose his job immediately. For the time being, Mr. Ivankovic's coaching team is still in place, but the current situation is really dire," wrote Sohu .

Coach Brando Ivankovic could be fired if he fails to beat Indonesia on October 15.

The Chinese team lost all three matches in the 2026 World Cup qualifying round 3. On the afternoon of October 10, coach Branko Ivankovic's team scored first but was defeated by Australia 3-1.

Previously, China lost to Saudi Arabia and Japan with scores of 1-2 and 0-7 respectively. Including the loss to South Korea in the final round of the second qualifying round, China's losing streak has now extended to four matches.

A Chinese player said before the match against Indonesia: "We have to win if we want to keep our chances. There is no other way. All members of the team share the same ideal of winning."

Defeating Indonesia at the moment is not easy. The representative of the "thousand islands country" is the team with the best performance in Southeast Asia for more than a year. China has a better head-to-head record than Indonesia, with 6 wins and only 1 loss, but Indonesia is clearly still rated higher.

Sohu newspaper commented that Indonesia's strength is formidable: "Indonesia has up to 13 naturalized players in the squad. Most of them come from European countries, most of them from the Netherlands. Many players are also key players at their home teams. They are unbeaten in 3 consecutive matches not only thanks to luck."

Despite the heavy pressure, coach Brando Ivankovic is still quite optimistic ahead of the important match: "It should be noted that our opponents in the first 3 rounds are all very strong in the region. We still have 7 matches left to play. China's goal is still to finish 4th. That is enough for the whole team to keep their hopes of attending the World Cup alive."

The match between China and Indonesia in the 2026 World Cup qualifying round 3 will take place at 7:00 p.m. on October 15 at Qingdao Stadium (China).

Thanh Loc

Source: https://vtcnews.vn/bao-trung-quoc-khong-thang-indonesia-hlv-co-the-bi-mat-viec-ngay-lap-tuc-ar901829.html