Legendary Chinese Players in the Singapore League
Singapore League: Challenges and Reversals for Chinese Players
Since 2000, the Singapore league has been reformed and opened up to Chinese players, aiming to raise the league's level and prepare for the naturalization of players. In the midst of this trend, Shi Jia Yi became the target of the Singapore FA's technical officials.
Shi Chia-Yi had dreams of playing in the A-League and even being selected for the national team, but reality brought him back to his senses and he started representing the adult team the following year. But reality brought him back to his senses and his goal was to survive first. he arrived in Singapore in 2002 and started representing the adult team the following year.
In 2004, Xinlin team brought in Guangdong Famous Striker players and the competition was fierce, but Shi Jia Yi was able to stay in the team with her strength and dedication.
Qiu Li, two years older than Shi Jia Yi, started playing soccer at the age of six and is talented enough to play in several positions. He used to play for the Liaoning ladder team, then was acquired by the Gao Fengwen football school, and then transferred to the Changchun Yatai ladder team.
In 2000, at the age of 19, Qiu Li had already made his debut for Changchun Yatai in the First B League, but had few chances. He moved back to Liaoning the following year and made only two appearances in four years.
Qiu Li and Shi Jia Yi have similar personalities, focusing on training and playing soccer, and are not good at dealing with interpersonal relationships.
While at Yatai, Qiu Li was a victim of a coaching staff conflict when he was discarded. At Liaoning, he suffered the same predicament, with his monthly salary hovering between 3,000 and 5,000 yuan.
In 2004, Qiu Li proposed a transfer to the club for a listed price of $600,000, which was considered a waste of balls. Eventually, he was left without a ball and his family was in debt.
In 2005, Qiu Li learned that the Singapore League was recruiting Chinese players and traveled to the South Seas with $3,000 to join the Sungei team where Shi Jia Yi was playing.
After performing well in her first two seasons with the Sun Ki team, Shi Jia Yi joined the Cubs soccer team as a foreigner in the 2004 season and was honored as the best young player in the league.
Shi Jia Yi earns $20,000 per month in Singapore, about $260,000 per year, enjoys local benefits and has a stable life.
In 2005, Sze Chia-Yi obtained Singapore citizenship and her income increased.
When Qiu Li left China, the Liaoning media described his situation as "no hope of getting ahead, no family, and living in the South China Sea". At Xinqi, he performed so well that he attracted the attention of national team manager Avramovic and joined the Cubs.
Khoo Lay made a name for himself in the Singapore League and became a fan favorite, known as "Nardo Khoo". He joined Tampines Rangers after moving to Home United.
Sze Chia-Yi has been a regular performer for the Singapore national team, helping the team to a 4-0 win over Palestine in 2007.
In 2007, Shi Jia Yi joined Home United and became the team captain. In the same year, national soccer manager Zhu Guanghu wanted him to return to his home country to play, but Khoo Li chose to stay and represent the Singapore national team.
In 2008, Khoo Lay represented Singapore in a World Cup qualifier, but FIFA did not recognize him and awarded Singapore a 0-3 loss in two matches.
The experience of playing in Singapore has allowed them to integrate into local life and see the league as more professional and healthy.
In 2010, South Korean coach Lee Lim Seng coached the Singapore team, with Shih Chia-Yi and Khoo Lay as the captain and vice-captain.
Qiu Li performs in the 2011 World Cup Asian Qualifier between the Chinese National Team and the Singapore National Team at the Tuodong Stadium in Kunming.
In an interview at the hotel where the Singaporean team is staying, Qiu Li and Shi Jia Yi said that they have been away from the Chinese soccer scene for many years and do not quite understand many of the rules here.
In 2016, Qiu Li returned to his hometown of Shenyang to join Shenyang City Construction, a China B team, as an assistant coach.
Shih Chia-Yi has lived a full life in Shanghai and Singapore with a deep commitment to youth development.
Since 2000, many Chinese players have traveled to Singapore to seek gold, but there have been more negative images than positive news.
In 2007, Wang Xin was hunted down on suspicion of gambling and match-fixing, triggering a storm of fake gambling and blackmail in Chinese soccer.
The Singapore League has invited foreign teams to play, but Chinese teams do not have a good reputation in Singapore.
In 2010, the match ended early after a mass brawl between Beijing Guoan's second team and the New Lions.
After a series of negative incidents, Chinese players and Chinese teams gradually disappeared from the Singapore league.
Qiu Li and Shi Jia Yi made a comeback in Singapore, but they regretted not being able to enjoy soccer in their hometown.
Nowadays, it is difficult to find Chinese players in the Singapore national team, and there are only a handful of Chinese.
Miracles like Qiu Li and Shi Jia Yi's fight in Singapore will be hard for any Chinese player to replicate in the future.
