Youngest China squad aims for 2014 World Cup

China's youngest-ever national squad set their sights on the 2014 World Cup finals as they head to Doha for the Asian Cup next month.

"The Asian Cup is a great chance of learning and practicing for us and the best warming up before the 2014 tournament," head coach Gao Hongbo was quoted as saying by the Beijing-based Titan sports newspaper in Guangzhou.

Gao regarded this Asian Cup as a real challenge for his young contingent and an opportunity to get familiar with the opponents and collect intelligence before 2014.

The young players, with an average age of 24, are enthusiastic and eager to prove themselves, but they are not always steady when facing big games, as they lack experience in handling pressure, Gao said.

The youngest-ever men's senior team has made progress over the year since coming together, winning seven of their 12 warm-up games and claiming the East Asian Football Championship title in January.

However, media and fans are not expecting much from their Asian Cup trip, for they drew in a tough group, with the host Qatar, Kuwait and Uzbekistan, who upset China 3-0 in the 2007 Asian Cup, causing China's first failure to reach the knockout stage in 27 years since the 1980 tournament.