People watch a Cun Chao soccer match in Rongjiang county, Southwest China's Guizhou Province, on June 3, 2023. Photo: VCG

Criticism of China's national men's soccer team is raging again after recent disappointing matches, and the debate continues about how to find the right track for the development of soccer in China.

The team produced a drab draw with Malaysia at the weekend and suffered a 0-1 defeat to Syria in Chengdu, Southwest China's Sichuan Province on Tuesday.

The two warm-up matches were designed to offer stylistic similarities to Thailand and South Korea, whom China will take on in the second round of the World Cup 2026 Asian qualifiers that are set to kick off in November. 

Even though an expanded format for the 2026 tournament in the US, Canada and Mexico will allow more teams from Asia to qualify, China' s hopes appear to be slim.

The recent results reinforced a fact that many fans have been reluctant to accept: China has descended to the middle and lower echelons of Asian football. 

Malaysia is not the same team that China faced a few years ago, but China has found itself stuck in a rut. 

It was the national team's attitude that outraged the public. In the nine minutes of stoppage time during the game against Malaysia, Chinese players retreated into their shells and wasted time by passing from side to side at the back as if on course to victory. 

Head Coach Aleksandar Jankovic felt embarrassed and apologized to the fans after the game. In the second game against Syria, the team moved up a gear and accelerated the pace of passing and pressing. However, the Syrian goalkeeper produced a string of brilliant saves to earn some relief for the war-torn country.

In the World Cup Asian qualifiers in 2019, the then head coach Marcello Lippi quit in a huff after a 1-2 defeat to Syria. 

The gap between China and the Asian powerhouses was made more stark as Japan coasted to a 4-1 win over Germany and saw off Turkey 4-2 in their warm-up matches.

Midfielder Xie Pengfei was the only redeeming feature of this lackluster team as his incisive runs and telling passes sparked some life in an ineffectual attacking line headed by Wu Lei and nationalized Ai Kesen.

"We need to find the right track and keep moving forward. We will not flinch when encountering difficulties. Perseverance is needed to be successful in football. We hope to get everyone's support and we will not give up," Xie said after the defeat to Syria.

Chinese soccer has been derailed from the right track for a long time, and there have been problems with personnel in the governing body. 

A total of 14 people ranging from the chief of the Chinese Football Association to head coach of the national team have been put under investigation since November. The governing positions appear to have become a way for people to pursue their personal interests instead of driving the development of soccer. 

China will not get out of the deadlock until the authorities reflect on the missteps and map out a path that conforms to the development of soccer. There is no easy way to stop the rot.

Fighting for a place in the 2026 world cup is not the primary goal. It is more important to step back and see if teenage Chinese soccer players are on the right track and what can be done to promote the development of soccer across the country.