The legendary Gao Hong, who once dressed for the national women's soccer team, was not shy about sharing his unique insights into youth soccer development during his tenure as director of competitive training at Evergrande Football School in a recent interview.
"Evergrande Football School has produced one batch of outstanding soccer seedlings after another, who are in urgent need of a broader stage to prove themselves. No matter what kind of uniform they wear, they can shine with unique light. Just like the current Guangzhou team, there are both young players and experienced veterans. They are all expected to become the pride of the soccer school! The new policy introduced by Mr. Xu is precisely aimed at bridging the boundaries between football schools and clubs and realizing a seamless connection.
In the Asian soccer landscape, the only way for our national team to emerge on the international stage is to produce high quality players. At present, there is still a lot of room for improvement for our soccer players. Taking the 2006 age group players as an example, they dared to make a big difference in the junior and middle school championships. For example, they managed to advance to Group A in the U19 tournament with a record of 4 wins and 1 loss. Despite the fact that the opponents they faced were generally two or three years older than them, they were still brave enough to overcome their strong opponents. The game of soccer is built on constant challenges, and only challenges can motivate us to continuously improve ourselves."
