FILE PHOTO - Football Soccer - China v Qatar - World Cup 2018 Qualifier - Kunming, China - 15/11/16. China's coach Marcello Lippi reacts. REUTERS/Stringer
HONG KONG (Reuters) - China's exit from the 2018 World Cup qualifying had been signposted for months but when it was finally confirmed on Tuesday, Marcello Lippi's team departed with the battered pride of the country's footballing reputation all but restored.
For a nation with ambitions to be a major power within the game, there were positives to be gleaned as well as a sense of what might have been as their campaign ended with a 2-1 win over 2022 World Cup hosts Qatar.
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