On the variety show Spitfire, former Chinese men's soccer star Fan Zhiyi's sharp comments on the Chinese men's basketball team have stirred up heated debate on the Internet. Some netizens questioned Fan's qualifications to comment on the men's basketball team, on the one hand because the performance of the Chinese men's soccer team is not better than that of the men's basketball team, and on the other hand they think that Fan lacks the real-world experience of playing in a top league, and that his qualifications are not enough to comment on the performance of the men's basketball team. What is the truth?
Where does Fan Zhiyi really stand in Chinese soccer history? Is he qualified to evaluate men's basketball? First of all, Fan Zhiyi's on-field performance is impeccable, capable of playing multiple positions such as defender, midfielder and striker, making him the all-around warrior of Asian soccer.
Talking about Fan's accolades, he has won the A-League Championship, Golden Boot, Chinese Footballer of the Year and Asian Footballer of the Year. He played for Crystal Palace of England and Dundee of Scotland during his stay in China and captained Shanghai Shenhua, Crystal Palace and the Chinese men's soccer team.
Fan's individual honors, such as transitioning from defender to striker and winning the league's Golden Boot, demonstrated his extraordinary strength. At the same time, he won the title of Asian Footballer of the Year, which is a recognition of his personal ability. It is worth mentioning that Fan Zhiyi's Asian Footballer of the Year honor contains more gold than Zheng Zhi's, because the selection object at that time included all Asian players, including those who played in Europe.
Although Fan did not play in the English Premier League, the level of the English League at that time was equivalent to the current English Championship. He captained Crystal Palace and played against Liverpool and other giants, so his personal strength should not be underestimated. In addition, he played for Dundee in the Scottish Premier League, which also proved his level.
After returning to China, the 36-year-old Fan Zhiyi continued to score goals in the Chinese Super League and maintained a high goal-scoring rate until his retirement.In 2002, he led the Chinese men's soccer team into the World Cup, proving that he was qualified to be the first person in the history of the national soccer team, and his spitting in the face of the Chinese men's basketball team also makes sense.
