(i) The warm veil of the family
It is often said that the world only sees the splendor but does not know the hardship behind it. Those silent efforts are still touching to this day. When it comes to struggle, what surges in my heart is the gratitude to my parents.
Home, the warmest harbor. When talking to others, I am always the bright star in your mouth, the expectations of your heart, so that I can move forward firmly. Your dedication, your encouragement, your trust, and your deep love are my driving force. Today, here I want to say aloud: Mom and Dad, you have worked hard, thank you, I love you. In the future career, I will be more vigorous forward, the pursuit of higher goals, to realize the dream. In life, I will be with you more, with practical action interpretation of filial piety, return your love and expectations.
(ii) Deep emotions in Jiangsu
On the winding road of life, one always meets those extraordinary people. I will soon meet my enlightened coach, Wang Lei. My father once told me that Coach Wang made dozens of phone calls for many days after a game. At that time, it was when the city team was preparing for the 2014 Provincial Games, and he desperately wanted me to join the training. However, my cultural achievements were excellent, and my family expected me to get into a good university and find a good job. Faced with the choice between soccer and studies, most of my family was not supportive, as were my relatives and friends. Playing soccer was really not easy under the living and training environment at that time. Once I joined, my cultural studies would definitely be affected. People were worried that I would be held back because of this. In the eyes of many people, playing soccer was hardly a path to success. They believe that in addition to hard work, there are many factors behind it. When it comes to children who play soccer, it always makes people feel that they are not down-to-earth enough. My brother has also advised me, "Why play soccer? Wouldn't it be more fun to play basketball with my brother?"
Looking back today, I still have to thank my father for supporting me on my soccer journey. As the backbone of a family, he respected my decision and took the pressure from the whole family. At the time, there were very few kids around us who chose to play soccer. I tried and decided to join the team, which was my first trip away from home. At the time, I just felt that my classmates around me were playing soccer, and I expressed my desire to go to my father when school started without the company of my friends. However, I was only 11 years old at the time and my understanding of choices and trials was still very limited. Of course, I want to thank Coach Wang.
After a few days of training with the city team, the provincial team came to recruit and everything fell into place. For the next four years, I attended the same school as the best players in Jiangsu province and the best players in Zhenjiang. Although there weren't many kids playing soccer in the province at the time, they were in the selection phase. I had no soccer fundamentals, but I had an advantage in speed, so it was almost logical for me to be recommended for the provincial team selection. Later, I met coaches such as Liang Guang, Yin Youyu and Fan Heping, who taught me that if I wanted to play soccer well, I had to be a good person first. To this day, they still want us to learn more.
(iii) The deep friendship of football schools
In 2014, after the Zhenjiang team won the provincial championship, I faced a new choice. Some of my teammates chose to go on to higher education after getting their athlete level certificates, but I didn't give up my soccer dream. At that time, the provincial team was aiming for the 2017 National Games, but the team was being reorganized and the youth training system of Jiangsu soccer was not yet perfect, so many players lost their opportunities. My father and I thought over and over again that in order to receive more professional training, it was better to join a soccer school or a club ladder team so that the road to the future would be wider. During this period, I experienced many disappointments, especially when I left the provincial team, tears could not help but come out of my eyes.
After saying goodbye to the Jiangsu team, I stayed at home for two or three months, neither finding a school nor a team. During that time, I was lost and didn't know what to do in the future. Later, I had the opportunity to try out for Luneng Soccer School. At that time I thought, "Wow, what a rare opportunity!" We knew that Luneng youth training was one of the best in China, and that Luneng had been the dominant team in China in our age group. In Jiangsu, the provincial team had never beaten Luneng, even though they managed to regularly finish in the top eight in the country. Even though I was a national junior player at the time, I paled in comparison to them. So, at the end of 2015, I decided to travel to Weifang.
During those three years of training, I followed the Brazilian coach elio. Although I didn't get many opportunities initially, under his guidance, I gradually became the Chinese player who played the longest and performed the best there. I would like to thank Secretary Tan: you supported me to study in Brazil. During the epidemic, you were in Brazil with me, Mr. Sun and Mr. Hu, the people you cared most about us. I still remember that epidemic prevention and control meeting. When the secretary, who was far away from China, saw me wearing long hair, he asked Mr. Hu and me to understand each other, and I refused. I said I would keep it as a souvenir and shave it when I returned to China. During those six months, without Secretary Tan's encouragement and support, it was hard for me to imagine how I would have persevered. But in hindsight, it was really a valuable asset in my life.
In August 2020, I returned home without incident. Secretary Tan helped me rent Inner Mongolia Zhongyou so that I could seamlessly connect with the domestic game despite the time constraints. In this way, I was able to become the first post-00s player from Luneng's youth training to break through in the professional league. I thank him from the bottom of my heart and I will always remember this favor. Of course, many other people helped me during my three years in Brazil, and I will always remember them. It was an unforgettable time and I benefited a lot from it.
(iv) Lunen's deep and long stay
In 2021, I was loaned to Wuhan. It was Li Xiaopeng who gave me the opportunity to step onto the Chinese Super League stage. Although my performance in Wuhan for one season was not ideal, Li and Yu always cared about me, helped me, gave me advice and shared their experience. I learned soccer skills from Mr. Li, and I also learned to be humble at all times. Thanks to Director Li's help, I benefited a lot.
2022 was a remarkable year for me. I returned to the national team once again, represented my country in international competitions and made my debut in the International A competition. Thanks to Coach Jankovic for giving me this opportunity. I know I'm not good, but his approach to soccer and work has shown me that only by being serious and brave can you play good soccer.
concluding remarks
On the way out of the club, I sent thank you notes to many people. I couldn't help but tear up when I saw their replies. I knew that everything here was coming to an end. Life is like a dream, but the feelings of those years will always be treasured in my heart. There are really no words to express those emotions. When I said goodbye that day, I felt as if I were a wanderer far from home. The scene of crying with my father seven years ago was still fresh in my mind. As I dried my tears and calmed down, I also knew I had to let go. I knew that I had grown up and was no longer that young teenager. I needed to do a lot of things in the future.
Seven years have passed in a flash, thanks to Shandong Taishan Club and the football school for training me. When I was young, the principal used to say to us: "Now you are proud of the school, and I hope the school will be proud of you in the future! There is no way to return the favor of nurturing. I can only make myself better through continuous efforts, persevere and shine. I hope one day the school will really be proud of me. For seven years, I've been treating this place as my home, wondering why being at home brings double the joy. Home is always the warmest place. It wasn't easy for me to make this decision, but no matter where I go, I will always be a member of the Taishan team and I will always support Shandong Taishan.
