Italian soccer legend Marcello Lippi, the new head coach of China’s men’s national soccer team, expressed confidence on Friday about helping to improve the game’s level in China, but experts called for more grassroots investment.

　　马塞罗·里皮是意大利足球传奇，也是新任中国男子国家足球队教练，本周五，他对帮助提升国足水平表达出满满信心，但是专家呼吁更多草根投资。

　　Lippi, who guided Italy to win the 2006 FIFA World Cup, has embraced a challenging mission to lead the Chinese national team through the Asian qualifying round for the 2018 World Cup in Russia and to revive the country’s soccer program.

　　在里皮的指导下，意大利队赢得了2006年国际足联世界杯。他已经接受了一个充满挑战的任务，带领中国国家足球队通过2018年世界杯亚洲资格赛，重振国家足球事业。

　　After signing a contract through 2019 with the Chinese Football Association, reported to be worth 20 million euro ($21.8 million) annually, Lippi said on Friday that he was lured back to China by the respect he received and the possibility of helping one of the world’s biggest economies to make progress on the soccer field.

　　本周五，和中国足球协会签订了每年价值2000万欧元(2180万美元)、截止2019年底的合同后，里皮称，是中国对他的尊重以及帮助世界最大经济体取得足球事业进步的可能性，吸引他重回中国的。

　　Lippi guided Guangzhou Evergrande to one Asian and three domestic championship titles from 2012 to 2015.

　　2012年到2015年，里皮指导广州恒大队获得了一个亚洲和三个国内冠军头衔。

　　Lippi said he has been missing China and hoped to come back since returning to Italy. "How they appreciated and respected my work and my team appeals to me," he said.Evergrande’s win of the 2013 AFC Champions League under Lippi has been a major international achievement of Chinese soccer since the country unveiled an ambitious plan to become a world soccer power.

　　里皮说，自从回意大利以后，他一直很想念中国，希望能回来。他说：“他们多么欣赏并且尊重我的工作啊!我的团队在呼唤我。”自中国发布了雄心壮志的计划，要成为世界足球大国后，在里皮的带领下，恒大获得了2013年亚洲联赛冠军，这是中国足球一项重要的国际成就。

　　However, the Italian is facing a tough task with China’s national team, ranked 84 in the world, because it has gained only one point after four qualifiers.

　　然而，这个意大利人正面临着一项艰巨的任务，由于在四轮资格赛后只得了一分，中国队世界排名为84。

　　"My priority is to help the team qualify for Russia. If we couldn’t reach there, then wecome back to work on the fundamentals on a longer period for the future of Chinese soccer," said Lippi, 68.

　　68岁的里皮说：“我的首要任务是帮助球队获得俄罗斯赛事的资格。 如果我们不能参赛，那我们就回来，花很长的一段时间为中国足球的未来努力打下基础。”

　　CFA Chairman Cai Zhenhua said the Italian’s managerial expertise and knowledge ofChinese soccer will help make a difference.

　　CFA主席蔡振华表示，里皮的管理经验和对中国足球的了解，将使得国足焕然一新。

　　"Hopefully, he could help the national team establish a technical style that fits into ourconditions and advise us on how to reform the national program ," he said.

　　他说：“希望他能帮助国足建立一套适应我们自身情况的技术风格，就如何改革国家足球事业做出建议。”

（编辑：何莹莹）