China News Service, Beijing, March 21st. On the 21st, Beijing time, in the Group C match of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers in the Asian top 36, the Chinese men's football team faced the Singaporean team away from home. After leading by two goals in the first half, they lost in the second half. The opponent scored two goals to equalize, and the two sides ended up drawing 2:2.
The Singaporean team is ranked 156th in the world and is the fourth team in Group C. It suffered two consecutive losses in the first two rounds. Like the Chinese team, the Singapore team recently completed a coaching change, and Japanese coach Tsutomu Ogura took over. He once served as an assistant coach for the Japanese national team and has a good understanding of Asian football.
The Chinese team had 1 win and 1 loss in the first two rounds, narrowly beating Thailand 2:1 away from home and losing 0:3 at home to South Korea. In the Asian Cup at the beginning of the year, the Chinese team failed to score a single goal and was eliminated from the group. This game is also the first match of the Chinese men's football team led by new coach Ivankovic.
For the national football team, which is ranked 88th in the world, it should have an advantage when facing the Singaporean team. In the past 16 encounters, the national football team has a record of 11 wins, 3 draws and 2 losses. The most recent match between the two teams was a warm-up match held in Tianjin in September 2013, when the national football team won 6:1.
The starting lineup of the Chinese team in this game consists of Wu Lei and Zhang Yuning as a double forward, Xie Pengfei, Li Yuanyi, Fernando, and Wang Shangyuan form a diamond midfielder. The defense line from left to right is Liu Yang, Zhu Chenjie, Jiang Guangtai, and Zhang Linpeng. The goalkeeper is Yan Junling. Compared with before, the main change in this campaign of the national football team is in the midfield. Fernando and Li Yuanyi represented the national football team for the first time.
After the game started, the Chinese team quickly launched an offensive. Fernando was particularly active on the wing, frequently creating threats with several dribbling breakthroughs. In the 9th minute, Xie Pengfei dribbled the ball from the wing. Wang Shangyuan received the ball and passed the ball diagonally. Wu Lei shook his head and scored. The national football team took a 1:0 lead.
In the 29th minute, Wu Lei shot in the penalty area to create a penalty, but unfortunately, his penalty kick was saved by the opponent's goalkeeper. However, in the second minute of stoppage time in the first half, Wu Lei scored twice with a supplementary shot, and the Chinese team expanded the score to 2:0.
The easy side played against the Singaporean team again to strengthen their offensive, and the substitution adjustments worked quickly. In the 52nd minute, Ramli, who came on as a substitute, made a sudden shot and the ball deflected into the net, and the Singapore team got a goal back. In the 81st minute, the Singapore team scored consecutively in the national football penalty area. Zhang Linpeng and Jiang Guangtai made consecutive clearance errors. Mahler, who came on as a substitute, scored with a blast. The Singapore team took advantage of the chaos to equalize the score.
The stoppage time in the second half lasted for 8 minutes, but the Chinese team failed to score any more goals. In the end, the national football team drew with the Singaporean team 2:2 away from home. Throughout the game, the Chinese team's offensive quality improved in the first half, but many defensive loopholes in the second half ruined the good game. The Singapore team scored its first point in this stage of the World Preliminaries.
Wu Lei said after the game that he did not play well enough in this game and failed to win the game that should be won. Especially in the second half, the opponent's offense increased significantly. He also said that everyone cooperates well in the midfield and frontcourt, and there is no big problem in running-in. He will strive to win the next home game.
In another match in the same group, the Thai team drew with the South Korean team 1:1, which was an upset. Currently, the Chinese team ranks third in the group with 1 win, 1 draw, and 1 loss, with 4 points, followed by South Korea and Thailand. According to the schedule, the Chinese team will play the Singapore team again at home in Tianjin, China on March 26. (over)