Returning Lippi knows scale of China challenge

FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - AFC Asian Cup - Quarter Final - China v Iran - Mohammed bin Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates - January 24, 2019 China coach Marcello Lippi before the match REUTERS/Suhaib Salem

HONG KONG (Reuters) - Slumped in his pitch-side seat at Abu Dhabi's Mohamed bin Zayed Stadium, Marcello Lippi carried the air of a man defeated long before the final whistle blew on China's challenge for January's Asian Cup.

A second defensive collapse in quick succession meant Lippi's team trailed by two goals inside the opening 31 minutes of their quarter-final meeting with Iran and, as China eventually limped out on the end of a 3-0 loss, the veteran Italian was crestfallen.