China National Football Team manager Marcelo Lippi has resigned as the manager of China after a shocking 2-1 defeat against Syria in their 2022 World Cup Qualifying campaign.
This is the former World Cup winning manager’s second resignation from the Chinese national team just this year. He previously departed after the side were eliminated from the 2020 AFC Asian Cup by Iran back in January, before returning to the hot seat in May.
Following the 2-1 defeat to Syria, Marcelo Lippi has announced his plans to resign from his position as 🇨🇳China PR coach.#WCQ | #WorldCup pic.twitter.com/iMkXc8qrHm
— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup) November 14, 2019
On this occasion, Lippi’s resignation comes as much more of a surprise. The Dragons are still on course to qualify for the next round of qualifying regardless of the result and should expect a win against Syria in the reverse fixture to put themselves back on top.
A goal from Osama Omari in the 19th minute put Syria ahead before the game was leveled by China’s only foreign-based star, Espanyol’s Wu Lei. However, their hard work was undone due to Guangzhou Evergrande defender Zhang Linpeng’s own goal, which saw the home side run out 2-1 winners.
It appears that all was not well behind the scenes, and the tense relationship between Lippi and the Chinese FA has finally unraveled. The side will now look to find a new coach to steady the ship and get them back on course to qualify for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.