The Chinese national football team were seen training hard in Abu Dhabi ahead of the Asian Cup on Thursday.
China, who have made 11 appearances in the continental showdown and finished runners-up in 1984 and 2004, will be forgiven for flying under the radar a little given their build-up to the finals in the UAE.
The appointment of Marcello Lippi, a World Cup-winning manager, more than two years ago has yet to pay rich dividends. In fact, as the septuagenarian's tenure draws to a close at the finals, the question is whether the veteran Italian has made much of a difference at all.
The former Juventus manager oversaw an upturn in fortunes in the early days of his reign, but China go into the tournament in the midst of an indifferent run of form.
Drawn into Group C, China kickstart their campaign against Kyrgyzstan on Monday in Al Ain. They take on the Philippines next, in Abu Dhabi on January 11. Their final group game will be the big one: against South Korea, Asian giants and 2015 Asian Cup runners-up, on January 16 also in the capital.
You can check out staff photographer Christopher Whiteoak's pictures of China's training session by browsing the photo gallery above. To move on to the next photo, click on the arrows, or if using a mobile device, simply swipe.
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Groups:
GROUP A: UAE, Bahrain, India, Thailand
GROUP B: Australia, Syria, Jordan, Palestine
GROUP C: South Korea, China, Kyrgyzstan, Philippines
GROUP D: Iran, Iraq, Vietnam, Yemen
