On the sunny afternoon of April 24, our U23 national team, led by Serbian coach Jankovic, had a warm-up match against Changchun Yatai of the Chinese Super League at Wuyuanhe Stadium in Haikou. In this fierce match, Dai Weijun and Sun Qinhan scored a goal each in the first and second half respectively, and finally defeated the opponent with a score of 2-0.
Dai Weijun, Zhu Chenjie, Zhang Linpeng, Wu Xi, Zhang Yuning and other powerful players from the national team participated in the tournament as "internal supporters". Among them, Dai Weijun and Zhu Chenjie made their debuts, and Zhu Chenjie held his ground for the whole 90 minutes. The other international players' playing time was around 30 minutes. This was the first time that three overage players represented the U23 national team since Jankovic took charge. From the performance of the game, these three overage players are far superior to the younger players in terms of technical ability and passing sense. Jankovic also spoke highly of the integration of the old and new players and the overall performance of the team.
According to the epidemic prevention regulations, China's U23 national team on April 24th ended a period of "14 + 7" days of medical isolation observation. In view of the arrangement of the CFA, the U23 national team will participate in the East Asia Cup Men's Football Tournament held in Japan in July, therefore, at the strong request of Jankovic, the U23 national team played the last warm-up match of the training period with Yatai, which is preparing for the Chinese Super League at noon of the 24th.
During the closed training in Haikou, the U23 national team "borrowed" from the national team, including Wu Xi, Zhang Linpeng, Zhang Yuning, including five international players. This arrangement is designed to enhance the U23 national team in the Asian Games men's football competition level. With the addition of the "new recruits", Jankovic hopes to test the status of the overage players and promote the tacit understanding between the old and new players through this warm-up match.
Despite the late addition of three overage players to the squad, Jankovic did not place them in the starting lineup. However, Zhu Chenjie and Dai Weijun, both of whom are of age, made their debuts. Dai Weijun opened the scoring in the 23rd minute, while Sun Qinhan added a goal midway through the second half. The three overage players made most of their appearances in the last 30 minutes of the game.
According to the feedback from the front, the three overage players have a significantly higher overall ability than the younger players. The end of a victory put the U23 national team in a happy mood. Of course, Jankovic was not concerned with just the result of an inconsequential warm-up match, but the desire of the whole team to keep playing and winning.
After the match, members of the U23 national team, who also ended their isolation, will leave Haikou one after another. The entire team is expected to regroup around July 10 to make final preparations for the 2022 East Asian Cup soccer tournament to be held in Japan in late July.
