Timnas China Imbangi Thailand pada Babak Pertama di Jinhua

Tim nasional sepak bola China bermain imbang tanpa gol melawan Thailand pada babak pertama pertandingan persahabatan internasional di Stadion Jinhua Sports Centre, Provinsi Zhejiang, pada Selasa, 9 Juni 2026.

Pertandingan ini menjadi laga kandang perdana bagi pelatih kepala China, Shao Jiayi, sekaligus sebagai ajang pematangan taktik skuad Naga menjelang bergulirnya kompetisi Piala Asia 2027.

Berdasarkan peringkat terbaru FIFA, kekuatan kedua negara ini tergolong berimbang dengan Thailand bertengger di posisi ke-93 dunia, sementara China berada tepat di bawahnya pada peringkat ke-94.

Shao Jiayi memfokuskan program tim pada pemulihan kebugaran fisik pemain selepas menempuh perjalanan udara pascakemenangan tipis 2-1 atas Singapura dalam laga tandang hari Jumat sebelumnya.

"The team only returned from Singapore yesterday. After an away match, these past few days have mainly been about recovery and adjustment," kata Shao Jiayi, Manajer China.

Shao Jiayi menginginkan anak asuhnya segera mencapai kondisi terbaik demi menyajikan tontonan berkualitas bagi publik sepak bola di Jinhua serta seluruh penjuru negeri.

"We hope to adjust our condition as well as possible and present an exciting match for the fans in Jinhua and across the country," ujar Shao Jiayi, Manajer China.

Stabilitas performa dan konsistensi hasil akhir menjadi target utama jangka panjang yang sedang dibidik oleh mantan pemain internasional China tersebut.

"I hope the team can become better and more stable. That is what I am pursuing," ucap Shao Jiayi, Manajer China.

Menurutnya, kematangan sebuah tim sepak bola akan tercermin secara langsung dari stabilitas performa yang konsisten ditunjukkan di atas lapangan.

"Whether at club level or with the national team, a mature team always has stable results," tutur Shao Jiayi, Manajer China.

Mengenai kekuatan lawan, Shao Jiayi menilai skuad Gajah Perang memiliki ketangguhan yang jauh lebih tinggi dibandingkan dengan Singapura.

"Thailand's strength is definitely greater than Singapore's. For a long time, we have not had much of an advantage in our matches against them. Tomorrow will be an intense game," sebut Shao Jiayi, Manajer China.

Tim pelatih China memberikan perhatian khusus pada perubahan gaya bermain Thailand yang kini tampil lebih agresif, langsung, dan cepat berdasarkan analisis laga kontra Kuwait.

"They have displayed many ideas. Their style is more direct and faster than before," kata Shao Jiayi, Manajer China.

Meskipun menganggap sang lawan bukan tim yang mustahil untuk dikalahkan, ia tetap menginstruksikan pasukannya untuk menjaga fokus penuh selama laga berlangsung.

"I wouldn't say we are facing an extremely powerful opponent, but it is a match that must be taken seriously," ujar Shao Jiayi, Manajer China.

Terkait kebijakan rotasi pemain akibat jadwal yang padat, Shao Jiayi memastikan komitmennya untuk mengejar kemenangan dengan komposisi terbaik.

"I don't think those two things contradict each other," jelas Shao Jiayi, Manajer China.

Ia menjamin seluruh pilar yang dipanggil masuk ke dalam skuad memiliki kompetensi setara untuk bermain sejak menit pertama pertandingan.

"Everyone who can make the national team has the ability to start... For me, there are no friendlies when it comes to the national team. Every match is important," ucap Shao Jiayi, Manajer China.

Dalam kesempatan ini, beberapa talenta muda potensial turut dipanggil masuk ke skuad nasional setelah menunjukkan performa impresif di kompetisi domestik.

"The young players were selected based on their performances in the Chinese Super League," kata Shao Jiayi, Manajer China.

Ia mengingatkan para talenta muda tersebut agar tidak cepat puas demi kelangsungan perkembangan karier sepak bola mereka di masa depan.

"They must remain humble and maintain a sense of hunger and dissatisfaction throughout their careers if they want to continue improving," tutur Shao Jiayi, Manajer China.

Selain itu, evaluasi mendalam dilakukan oleh jajaran pelatih menyusul kebobolan satu gol yang dialami China pada laga kontra Singapura.

"We made a very good summary after the last game," ujar Shao Jiayi, Manajer China.

Shao Jiayi mengakui gol tersebut lahir akibat kurang detailnya instruksi taktis serta antisipasi tim terhadap dinamika kesulitan di lapangan.

"The goal we conceded happened because the coaching staff's requirements were not detailed enough and we had not considered some difficulties carefully enough," aku Shao Jiayi, Manajer China.

Kejadian kebobolan tersebut menjadi dorongan bagi staf kepelatihan untuk meningkatkan kualitas persiapan taktik sebelum pertandingan berikutnya.

"The goal gave me a lot of inspiration. Preparation must be as detailed as possible," kata Shao Jiayi, Manajer China.

Guna mempercepat pemahaman strategi, tim pelatih meningkatkan porsi latihan lapangan dan mengadakan analisis video simulasi pertandingan.

"Our hope is that the players can absorb the ideas of the coaching staff as quickly as possible," ucap Shao Jiayi, Manajer China.

Shao Jiayi optimis anak asuhnya bisa tampil lebih solid secara kolektif sebagai satu unit seiring bertambahnya waktu latihan bersama.

"There are difficulties, but I believe that with more time and more repetition they can fully achieve that and play more as a unit," pungkas Shao Jiayi, Manajer China.

Kondisi kelelahan akibat perjalanan panjang dari Singapura turut diamini oleh penyerang tim nasional China, Zhang Yuning.

"We have just arrived back and are actively recovering from fatigue," kata Zhang Yuning, Penyerang China.

Meski mengalami kelelahan, Zhang Yuning memastikan seluruh anggota tim siap memberikan kemampuan maksimal pada laga uji coba ini.

"We hope to give everything and perform well in the next match," tutur Zhang Yuning, Penyerang China.

Di kubu berseberangan, pelatih kepala Thailand, Anthony Hudson, mengakui tantangan besar yang menanti timnya di Piala Asia AFC 2027 berdasarkan hasil undian Grup F.

"Before the draw, everyone hoped that we [Thailand] would be drawn in an easy group so we could have a better chance to reach the later stages of the tournament. But we've got very strong opponents, especially Qatar, the team I know personally well, and many people know how strong Japan are," kata Anthony Hudson, Pelatih Kepala Thailand.

Meskipun menyadari kekuatan besar dari tim lawan, pelatih asal Inggris tersebut menilai persiapan matang menjadi kunci utama karena segala kemungkinan bisa terjadi dalam sepak bola.

"Before the draw, everyone hoped that we would be drawn in an easy group so we could have a better chance to reach the later stages of the tournament. But we’ve got very strong opponents," ujar Anthony Hudson, Pelatih Kepala Thailand.

Sementara itu, gelandang muda Thailand, Kakana Khamyok, mengekspresikan kegembiraannya setelah mendapat panggilan masuk ke dalam skuad senior bentukan Hudson.

"I feel happy every time I get a call-up for the national team. In this camp I have a chance to meet senior players and many new faces that I admire," kata Kakana Khamyok, Gelandang Timnas Thailand.