Chinese Football Association offers apology

The Chinese Football Association has apologized to fans for its incompetence in managing and developing the country's domestic game, in the wake of a humiliating loss to Thailand and the firing of the national coach.

On Monday the association said it had reached an agreement with Jose Antonio Camacho to terminate his contract as national team coach.

However, the association said it is unfair to put all the blame on the head coach for China's poor performance at international level. It accepted its "inescapable responsibility" and said it will make every effort to strengthen the management of the national team.

"First, the selecion standard of national players should be changed," the association said in a statement on Monday. "Apart from skill, a player should also possess a never-say-die spirit and sense of honor, which will be the prerequisites for gaining a national position.

"Players who perform passively will be excluded from the squad for the East Asian Cup."

As the association will also need to pay Camacho a large sum in compensation, it also vowed to revamp its hiring criteria and process, as well as eradicate legal loopholes and risks in contracts.

In explaining the reason for terminating Camacho's contract, the association said it was because the Spaniard's 22-month tenure had failed to meet its expectations and that the national team had fallen to its lowest point in the world rankings.

Meanwhile, the association has started its search for a new head coach and backroom staff.

The Chinese national team will compete in the East Asian Cup in July, and has three Asian Cup qualifiers to play in October and November.

Among the many domestic and foreign candidates is fan favorite Marcello Lippi, the Italian coach who has led Chinese club Guangzhou Evergrande to much success over the past two seasons.

However, the 65-year-old has told Evergrande players he will not consider any offer before his current contract ends, unless club owner Xu Jiayin receives instructions from higher up, Soccer News reported.

Coaches in the Chinese Super League have also turned down the chance of taking the national team's helm, including Gao Hongbo, Camacho's predecessor, who is now at Shanghai East Asia, and Shanghai Shenxin coach Zhu Jiong.

Key words:
中国足球协会zhōnɡɡuó zúqiú xiéhuì ：The Chinese Football Association
道歉dào qiàn：apologize
教练jiào liàn：coach
终止zhōnɡ zhǐ：terminate
合同hé tonɡ：contract