Despite a lackluster friendly match performance, Chinese men's national team head coach Aleksandar Jankovic is still upbeat about the upcoming AFC Asian Cup.

China head coach Aleksandar Jankovic looks on before the Group C match against South Korea of the 2026 FIFA World Cup Asian Zone qualifying tournament in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong Province on Nov. 21, 2023. (Xinhua/Jia Haocheng)

In an exclusive interview with Xinhua, the Serbian said that his team will focus on themselves in preparations and has been mentally and physically ready for the tournament.

"I'm happy, honored and privileged, excited to be part of this big event. We are all very motivated, very sharp mentally and physically. We will come to the competition with very clear mind, positive spirit and big ambitions," Jankovic said.

"It's a precious experience for our team to play with the strongest teams in Asia. We will open our eyes to see about our capacities. Hopefully we go all the way in this Asian Cup as far as possible," he said.

During the three-week training camp in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the Chinese team lost to Oman and Hong Kong, China 2-0 and 2-1 respectively, which Jankovic said was acceptable.

"Our training went a bit stronger at the beginning, and we were a bit heavier during these preparation games. I did it with purpose, because we need to fuel the engine for the following month and strong tests in the competition. So I put the result of the preparation games in the second. During the first 10 days of the preparation we have been in a heavy load," he explained.

"But now we are getting better and better, legs are lighter and lighter. We go into the game more, and then we will be ready for the competition," Jankovic added.

"We will never use anything as an excuse. Despite the fact that not all our players are in the game rhythm, compared to some other selections, but we are more fresh. We just adjusted the preparation, so all the players can be at the peak of the performance during the tournament."

The Chinese team, who has been allocated into group A with host Qatar, Tajikistan and Lebanon, is set to play its opening match on Saturday against Tajikistan.

"When we land in Doha, no matter what you did in preparation games, we all start from zero," Jankovic said, "I can not talk that much about Tajikistan because it's also tactical question, but you can be sure we already prepare the game totally. We know not only starting 11 for Tajikistan, but also the way we want to play this game."

The 51-year-old coach emphasized the team would focus on themselves as both Qatar and Lebanon changed head coach just before the tournament. "We are not that much focused on them. We know that if we are at the peak of our level of performance, we can match up with the strongest teams in Asia."

"We will update everything we already have, stick to our values, try to play our way of playing and let them adapt to us," he added.

Jankovic also revealed that Zhang Yuning and Wang Qiuming, who just recovered from injuries, were close to return to full form. "Our target is that all the players will be ready for the first game."

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