Li longs to be a regular in red

Lippi has not had the luxury of reporting a clean bill of health for Thursday's test.

Defensive stalwart Zhang Linpeng is rated doubtful after injuring his leg in training on Tuesday, while fellow defender Li Lei also picked up a knock in a friendly against a local team in Sharjah on Sunday.

Star striker Wu Lei admitted to feeling "a little bit tired" after playing in Espanyol's 3-1 defeat at Atletico Madrid on Sunday night, but vowed that will not affect his "physical and mental condition".

"As a Chinese national team player, I'm confident about the next match," added Wu. "I'm not focused on outside factors such as a team's ranking, fans' expectations and other pressures. We still have a lot of games to play. The most important thing is to remain confident.

"Coach has always emphasized－not just for the next game－the difference between the international games and the club matches. The coach always said that we have to have a quicker pace.

"After a year of playing in Europe, my biggest impression is that the European leagues play at a much faster pace.

"It's very important to maintain a quick pace when facing strong national teams. Lippi has told us that he's satisfied with the team's training so far."