A set of data recently disclosed by "Football News" has triggered a wide discussion about Wu Lei's performance in the national football team. As the top scorer of the Chinese Super League, Wu Lei's performance in the national team was not satisfactory. The stats show that Wu Lei has scored only three goals in 24 appearances against Asia's top three teams. This result will undoubtedly pose a huge challenge for the upcoming round of 18, especially against the three giants of the same group: Japan, Saudi Arabia and Australia.
Wu Lei's national team statistics have always attracted much attention. Since his first match against Uzbekistan in 2013, Wu Lei has only scored four goals and provided one assist in 30 matches against the top three teams. Especially in the face of Asian first-tier teams such as Japan, South Korea and Iran, Wu Lei's score is 0 goals and 0 assists; Against second-tier teams such as Australia, Qatar and Iraq, he scored four goals; Against Pot 3 teams such as Saudi Arabia, Uzbekistan and Jordan, he also failed to score and only had one assist. These stats reflect his inefficient performance against strong teams.
It is worth noting that three of Wu Lei's four goals were scored against Qatar and Iraq, and one of them was scored in the World Cup round of 40 against Qatar, which had already qualified ahead of schedule and rotated the squad. The really convincing goal was the one against Australia in the round of 12 of the 2022 World Cup. In other words, in the match between Japan, Saudi Arabia and Australia, which are in the same group as the round of 18, Wu Lei has only scored 1 goal against Australia in the past 12 years.
In contrast, veterans such as Hao Junmin, Gao Lin, Yu Dabao and Wu Xi performed more prominently. Hao Junmin scored five goals in the same game, and several others also scored three goals each. The outstanding performance of these veterans has undoubtedly put pressure on Wu Lei. Despite this, Wu Lei's hot form in the Chinese Super League this season has brought new hope to people. He is currently the most reliable player in the attacking line of the national football team.
Facing the upcoming round of 18, Wu Lei needs to show stronger courage and confidence in the game. The national football team needs to provide him with more effective firepower support through tactical design, and at the same time improve offensive supporting means to help Wu Lei seize opportunities at critical moments. After all, the national team does not have five foreign players, and how to maximize the strength of local players is a huge challenge for the coaching staff. If he can score against Japan, Saudi Arabia and Australia, it will not only improve the overall strength of the national team, but also add a strong touch to his national team career. (Super League Commentary)