Tokyo: Japan coach Vahid Halilhodzic has backed World Cup-winning manager Marcello Lippi to transform China into a team capable of qualifying for the 2022 finals in Qatar.
Halilhodzic’s side handed an inexperienced China side a 2-1 defeat in the second round of matches in this year’s East Asian Championship on Tuesday to leave Lippi’s side with no hope of claiming the regional title for a third time.
However, with Lippi building for the future, the quality of the work being done by the former Juventus coach, who led his native Italy to glory at the 2006 World Cup, has not been lost on Halilhodzic.
“He’s preparing for 2022 and all the players trust Lippi a lot,” he said.
“He’s the best coach in the world. He has won everything, every title he wanted. He has chosen a team that is growing up and is very promising for the future. Results don’t come in a few months, so to make a competitive group you need to have some years until you achieve that.”
