When the camera focuses on the soccer city of Dalian, the figures of the Chinese men's soccer team preparing for the game are busy shuttling. A warm-up match with Vietnam is about to kick off. According to the Beijing Youth Daily, the training of the national soccer team, the new force is like a surging wave, which has brought about a radical change in the competitive pattern within the team, not just as a companion of the veterans.
Looking back at September's preparations, the slightly tired national soccer team seems to have become a thing of the past. Now, the new phase of the national football team has a new look, and of the 14 new faces that have not been seen, nine originated from the Asian Games team. The fact that Jankovic chose to conduct the ultimate training session on the eve of the 36-team showdown in the qualifiers is undoubtedly a sign of the team's renewal. The key to injecting vitality lies in the infusion of fresh blood, especially the rise of young players.
In the current national team lineup, only four players - Wu Xi, Ekerson, Wang Dalei and Tan Long - have birthdays that fall before 1990. And more than 70% of the players are over 30 years old, including Wu Lei, Li Lei, Wang Qiuming, Wang Shangyuan, Xie Pengfei, Li Ke and Yan Junling. Among this group of veterans, Yan Junling, Wu Lei, Li Ke, Ekerson and Wu Xi became the temporary core. In other words, more than half of the starting positions are waiting to be played against international players.
In this training session of Yankovic, the young stars are more and more conspicuous, they include Fang Hao, He Yupeng, Xie Weijun, Ye Lijiang and Ma Zhen. In the face of the urgent situation of the World Cup, their joining is not a simple accompaniment, but seeks to quickly integrate into the team, and become the emerging force to impact the 2026 World Cup. Both experienced veterans and dynamic newcomers will need to adapt to the national team's preparatory rhythm in a short period of time and deeply understand the tactical intentions of the head coach.
