WORLD Cup-winning coach Marcello Lippi was named new boss of China’s national soccer team Saturday.

    The appointment of the Italian — one of the world’s most decorated football coaches — comes with China all but out of contention for the 2018 World Cup in Russia following embarrassing qualification losses to Syria and Uzbekistan.

    The 68-year-old Lippi, who has steered Chinese top-flight side Guangzhou Evergrande to three consecutive domestic league titles since 2012, takes over following the resignation of Gao Hongbo.

    “I am proud to announce the start of a new adventure as coach of the Chinese national team,” Lippi tweeted.

    The Chinese Football Association (CFA) swooped in for Lippi after “friendly consultations on both sides,” it said in a statement, without giving details of the wily tactician’s contract.

    The CFA said it will hold a press conference Friday.

    Lippi has been linked to the coaching job after former coach Gao submitted his resignation when China lost to Uzbekistan 2-0 in the FIFA World Cup Asian Zone qualifiers last week, leaving China with almost no chance of making it to Russia.

    Lippi, who masterminded Italy to its most recent World Cup triumph in 2006, boasts a bulging CV that included monumental success at Juventus over a nine-year period that was interrupted by a comparatively disastrous season at Inter Milan in 1999-2000.

    Lippi began his first stint in China in 2012 when he was appointed the head coach of Guangzhou Evergrande and led it to the Asian top podium for the first time in 2013. He quit the Guangzhou job in 2014, and the two and a half years’ coaching experience in China’s top-flight league has earned him a reputation in the country.

    Lippi will make his debut with the national team in the fifth game of the Asian Zone qualifiers against Qatar on Nov. 15.

    Some experts believe Lippi’s arrival could bring a more far-reaching significance for Chinese soccer beyond the national team level.

    In February 2015, the Chinese Government carried out a milestone soccer reform plan, which encourages private sector investment and sets a long-term goal of making the country a top-tier soccer power.

    Lippi, as a world famous soccer figure, could take an important role far beyond his coaching job in the plan.

    “Lippi’s arrival will immediately promote the brand of the Chinese soccer at the international level,” said Prof. Tan Jianxiang with South China Normal University. “Lippi, with his international fame, could become an ambassador for Chinese soccer. We could benefit much more than merely seeing him as a coach.” (Xinhua）