GUANGZHOU - Though rumors persist that the Chinese Football Association (CFA) will replace all three national coaches, Li Xiaopeng, head coach of China's women's soccer team, has expressed his determination to stay on.
"I won't leave the team rashly, because this is a promising squad," Li said after China lost 2-0 to Korea in the bronze medal match. "If there is no hope, I will leave voluntarily."
The 35-year-old coach, who was appointed in early August, missed his target of at least achieving a medal in the Asian Games, but insisted that the three-month tenure was too short for him to give the team a dramatic makeover.
"My team and I are both very young; we played well in the recent matches, but also paid the price," said Li.
"In the past three months, our team made changes in attacking from the back to midfield. To enhance the attacking rhythm from the center going forward, we need at least half a year."
China fell behind in the first minute of the game, which drove the match in the opposite direction of Li's plan.
"I focused a lot on attacking, so I only thought about our opponent's counterattack and didn't expect them to control the game so well," Li said.
"Because of the wrong tactic, we gave up a goal at the very beginning and I'm responsible for that silly mistake."
Li admitted his team was not strong enough and didn't play the best, but he said there's also big room for improvement.
"When you're climbing a hill, it's very common that sometimes you have to stop, sometimes you have to slip, before finally climbing up to the top," said Li.
"We have gifted players and I have to prove they are capable."
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