Ten years ago, Guangzhou Evergrande won the AFC Championship and became the first champion in Chinese soccer history to win the AFC Championship, realizing a dream that many soccer players dare not even think about.
This Guangzhou team, led by Lippi, is a star-studded one.
The internal reinforcements gathered many former and current international players in China, while the external reinforcements were the top players in Asia at that time. Borrowing from the top clubs in Europe and the United States, the team model of "local international players + strong foreign aid", supplemented by strong management, allowed the team to grow rapidly, from the Chinese Super League to the Asian Championship rapid demise.
The first taste of the AFC Champions League was an eye-opener for Guangzhou Evergrande's debutantes - beating K-League giants Jeonbuk Hyundai 5-1 away from home. How many fans were deeply disappointed with Chinese soccer and returned to the Chinese Super League because of the shock this match brought?
The second year of the AFC Champions League was even better! Champion coach Lippi immediately took office and led the team through five hurdles and finally climbed to the top of Asia, lifting the AFC Champions League trophy in one fell swoop.
Some people have questioned the goodness of this championship! What's the point of saying "national team+super foreigners" doesn't get more joy than martial arts, and that Japan and Korea's best players stayed in Europe.
This is right or wrong! It's true that the best Japanese and South Korean players have left the country, but in 2013, compared to 2023, Japan and South Korea have more players, at a higher level, and are playing more starters in the big 5 leagues.
More study abroad means more good players leave, which means their league level gets weaker! In this case, it should be easier for Chinese Super League teams to win the championship. Why is it that Shanghai Port, also a "national team + super foreign aid" team, can't even qualify for the AFC Champions League, even though they lost to Pathum United, the 8th team in the Thai Premier League?
Some teams have spent 12 billion dollars and only won a Chinese Super League title, not even touching the threshold of the AFC Champions League final! It is clear that if you want to win the AFC Champions League, you can certainly spend the most money on the best players.
Everyone went for it! Ten years later, Guangzhou Evergrande had long since changed its name to Guangzhou and had been relegated to the Central League.
And now it has become a truly civilian team (not the kind of civilian team that Cai Huikang was talking about) - the lowest invested team in both leagues, the Super League + the Central League.
Who is the biggest star on this team? The players gave an answer - Efirdin, a jumped-up national Olympic forward worth only $300,000 a year.
Tang Tang's two-time AFC Champions League winners dominate the second tier of Chinese soccer's professional league and have to rely on a group of soccer academy students to shore up their facade. Can these young players, whose average age is around 21, play in the Central League? Many thought Guangzhou would drop twice in a row, from the Chinese Super League to the Central League, then to the Central B the following year.
This view is not surprising! Cheng Yaodong was the first to play in the U22 national youth to play in the Central League B, but did not play for a reason. In contrast, Guangzhou players are younger, with a single selection coming from the Evergrande Soccer School, not to mention the higher level of the Central League.
At first, these new recruits got only 3 points in the first eight rounds and it was hard to win a victory, they were properly relegated. The result was surprising. In the next Central League match, Guangzhou was relegated four rounds ahead of schedule.
Being able to stay up is the biggest benefit, a success! The only way to rise again is to stand firm.
And it's the only time the club can spare its heart for something big - celebrating the 10th anniversary of the team's first AFC Champions League title.
November 9, 2013 was the day Guangzhou dominated Asia. On this day, Guangzhou proudly proclaimed "We are the King of Asia" (above).
