In 2002 Milu led the national football team to the World Cup, a review of that magical history

On October 7, 2001, at the Wulihe Stadium in Shenyang, the Chinese men's football team defeated Oman 1-0 to secure a ticket to the 2002 World Cup in South Korea and Japan. This is the only time in the history of the Chinese men's football team that they have qualified for the World Cup. That night, 200,000 fans took to the streets in Shenyang to revel, and five CCTV sets broadcast the goal footage continuously for 12 hours. This period of history has passed for 24 years, and there has never been a second time.

The Serbian coach Bora Milutinovic, also known as Milu, led the team and became the only foreign coach in the history of Chinese football to lead a team to the World Cup. The true details of this story far exceed official records and involve the mysterious philosophy of happy football, the mysterious logic of player selection, and the mysterious luck of key matches.

Milu's resume

Milutin was born in Serbia in 1944 and played for Yugoslavia, Monaco and other clubs as a professional player. He began coaching the national team in 1986 and led four countries, Mexico, Costa Rica, the United States, and Nigeria, to enter the World Cup and the knockout stages.

The key reason why the Chinese Football Association signed Milu in 2000 was his World Cup winning streak. Milu was 56 years old at the time and was an internationally recognized World Cup expert. The annual salary of US$1.5 million in 2000 was the highest foreign teacher contract in Chinese football history. The gamble proved worthwhile.

The true meaning of happy football

Milu repeatedly said happy football during his stay in China. The Chinese media initially interpreted this as a casual attitude of just having fun. But Milu himself later explained in an interview that the true meaning of happy football is to reduce stress.

The core reason for the Chinese men's football team's collapse in major competitions has always been psychological pressure. The essence of Milu's happy football is psychological adjustment that makes players forget about winning and losing and only think about playing well. This simple psychological method is particularly effective for Chinese players. Milu often asks the players to sing and dance together after training to create a relaxed locker room atmosphere.

The mysterious logic of selection

Milu's selection criteria are confusing to both the Chinese Football Association and the media. He repeatedly used some of the league's mediocre players and snubbed star players. For example, he used Hao Haidong but reduced his playing time. He used 31-year-old Fan Zhiyi as the core of the defense instead of the younger Zhang Enhua.

Milu's selection logic is based on the player's psychological quality rather than technical ability. He believes that what competition requires is stable output rather than technical versatility. This selection standard makes Milutin's team rarely collapse in key games. This is the most psychologically stable national team in the history of Chinese men's football.

The density of national team training camps

The intensity of national team training after Milutin took office is the highest in the history of Chinese football. From April 2000 to October 2001, there were a total of 360 days of training, which is equivalent to one and a half years of training with the national team.

This intensity of training has created a high degree of understanding among the players. The lineup of Fan Zhiyi, Sun Jihai, Ma Mingyu, Shen Si, Qi Hong, Li Xiaopeng, Hao Haidong, Yang Chen, and Su Maozhen has been running in for a year and a half, and their tacit understanding in key games is far better than that of opponents who only trained for 10 days. This is the core result of Milu-style training.

luck of the draw

In the Asian draw of the 2001 World Cup preliminaries, China was assigned to Group B, and its opponents were the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Qatar, and Uzbekistan. This is the weakest group drawn in the history of the Chinese men's football team. Japan, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and South Korea are all in another group, Group A, and China has avoided all the traditional strong teams in Asia.

This kind of luck makes Milou's job much easier. Milu himself admitted after the game that the draw was one of the keys for China to qualify. If China is assigned to Group A and faces Japan and Iran, the results will be completely different. Milu's genius was to take full advantage of this luck.

The decisive battle for Oman

China's match against Oman on October 7, 2001 was the decisive match to qualify. At that time, the Chinese team needed to win or draw to secure qualifying. Milutin's pre-match plan was to defend and counterattack.

In the 36th minute of the game, Yu Genwei received a pass from Hao Haidong and scored 1-0. After that, the Chinese team fully defended Oman. In the end, China won the game 1-0. All 60,000 fans in Shenyang stood up and applauded. This is the most glorious night in the history of Chinese men's football. Milu was lifted by Fan Zhiyi in the center of the field after the game.

Total collapse of the World Cup main event

In June 2002, the Chinese men's football team lost all three games in the main match: Costa Rica 0-2, Brazil 0-4, and Türkiye 0-3. Scoring 0 goals and conceding 9 goals in three games is the worst World Cup result in the history of Chinese football.

The core reason for the collapse of the main race is the level gap. In the World Cup preliminaries, China faced Asian teams and in the World Cup main matches, it faced world-class teams. This level gap makes Milutin's happy football and solid counterattack ineffective. The true level of the Chinese men's football team was ruthlessly exposed in the main match. But this does not deny Milutin's achievements. After all, leading the Chinese team to the World Cup is a miracle in itself.

Milu's departure

After the 2002 World Cup, the Chinese Football Association did not renew Milutin's contract. The logic at the time was that the Chinese men's football team had qualified for the World Cup, proving that Milutin's work was done, and the national football team should go its own way. This decision later proved to be a big mistake.

After Milu left, the Chinese men's football team failed in five consecutive World Cup qualifiers. Haven't entered the World Cup again in 23 years. If Milutin had renewed his contract back then, the trajectory of the Chinese men's football team might have been completely different. After Milu left China, he went to coach the national teams of Iraq, Honduras and other countries, creating miracles every time. His World Cup winning streak continues to extend, but China is no longer one of the stops.

Milu’s personal relationship with China

Milu came back many times after leaving China. He visited Beijing in 2006 and Shanghai in 2014. After the Chinese Men's Football World Cup failed in the 2019 preliminaries, he publicly issued a statement to cheer for the Chinese team.

Milu will still pay attention to the Chinese men's football team when he is 80 years old in 2024. He said in the interview that the problem with the Chinese men's football team is not the players but the system. This judgment is completely consistent with the diagnosis made by local Chinese experts. Milu's feelings for China are real and lasting, and he is respected by Chinese fans as their eternal mentor. This is the most precious legacy left by Milu in 2002.

Miracle of Milu cannot be copied

Milu's success is the comprehensive result of the right time, right place and right people. It's good luck to draw lots for the World Cup preliminaries. The geographical advantage is that Chinese football still had a number of outstanding local players at that time. Renhe is Milu's psychological method suitable for Chinese players.

All three conditions later disappeared. The Chinese men's football team did not get a good draw for the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, and there are no local players of Milu's level, and no foreign teachers of Milu's level are willing to come to China. This is why Milu’s miracle has not been replicated in 23 years. What the Chinese men's football team needs to enter the World Cup again is not another Milu but the rebirth of the entire football system.