China dump Perrin after World Cup flop

AFP, BEIJING: China's football body announced the sacking of national coach Alain Perrin on Friday after a disappointing run of results left their World Cup qualifying campaign hanging by a thread.
The Chinese Football Association (CFA) said the decision had been made “out of consideration for the performance of the Chinese national team” and "the needs of future team-building”.
After “sincere consultations” the two sides had decided Perrin “will no longer work as the head coach of China's national team”, a statement on the CFA website said, adding that the search for a replacement would start immediately.
The news comes just a year after the ex-Lyon and Marseille boss led China to the quarter-finals of the Asian Cup in Australia, in their best performance in more than a decade.
But optimism has since faded, and the CFA made a public apology and announced a review into the Frenchman's performance after a 0-0 World Cup qualifying draw with Hong Kong in November.
With two games to go in the second round of qualifying for Russia 2018, China are third in their group and teetering on the brink of elimination.
The way forward for China remains unclear, but they will be desperate to solve the riddle of creating a national team to match the country's soaring football ambitions.

China dump Perrin after World Cup flop

AFP, BEIJING: Chinas football body announced the sacking of national coach Alain Perrin on Friday after a disappointing run of results left their World Cup qualifying campaign hanging by a thread. The Chinese Football Association (CFA) said the decision had been made out of consideration for the performance of the Chinese national team and the needs of future team-building. After sincere consultations the two sides had decided Perrin will no longer work as the head coach of Chinas national team, a statement on the CFA website said, adding that the search for a replacement would start immediately. The news comes just a year after the ex-Lyon and Marseille boss led China to the quarter-finals of the Asian Cup in Australia, in their best performance in more than a decade. But optimism has since faded, and the CFA made a public apology and announced a review into the Frenchmans performance after a 0-0 World Cup qualifying draw with Hong Kong in November. With two games to go in the second round of qualifying for Russia 2018, China are third in their group and teetering on the brink of elimination. The way forward for China remains unclear, but they will be desperate to solve the riddle of creating a national team to match the countrys soaring football ambitions.