Since July 21, 2021, Shen has stepped into the Celtic
women's soccer
of the green field, her overseas journey has spanned 300 days and nights.
She says she is no longer a young girl at the beginning of her life. At the crucial moment when she was 19 years old, she bravely put the dream of studying abroad in her heart into practice.
Just as she grew up playing soccer with the boys, she ultimately chose to pursue her dream and this path to professional soccer.
During these 300 days, Shen Mengyu experienced the loneliness and confusion of arriving in a foreign country for the first time, as well as moments of self-doubt in difficult situations.
However, she has also had the joy of winning the League Cup with her team, the excitement of competing at the Park and the journey of constant growth.
CNN Sports x Shen Mengyu
Loneliness and Growth
CNS Sports: When you won the championship, you wrote: "Thank you for being away from home and fighting hard for 132 days." Is there a lot of bitterness hidden behind this?
Shen Mengyu: Loneliness often comes to mind when you are abroad, especially when video links with family and friends are limited due to the time difference.
When I first arrived abroad, I didn't know anything about many things, and I was really confused when I left my familiar circle and came to an unfamiliar environment where I needed to adapt from scratch.
Not having family and friends around me to rely on and having to deal with everything on my own was stressful.
I used to have problems with my mindset, which led to poor form. Demanding a lot from myself and sometimes striving for perfection too much, which in turn makes me perform badly.
The encouragement of my teammates and the guidance of my head coach has helped me to come out of my rut, and that's kind of a growth spurt.
CNN Sports x Shen Mengyu
Integration and mutual assistance
CNS Sports: It's been 10 months since you stayed overseas, have you fully adapted to life overseas? What are the changes compared to when you first arrived?
Shen Mengyu: Relatively speaking, it has adapted a lot. When I first started, I didn't even know how to take the train or bus, or where to go to buy food.
Now that I am familiar with life here, I have no problem communicating with my teammates and have become more integrated.
I've also become more comfortable with my teammates. I'm not really a "social butterfly" but I'm having a lot of fun with everyone now.
I feel really lucky to be here. Got a lot of help and the teammates are very friendly.
For example, with new tactics and training programs, they would ask me if I understood them. If I didn't understand, they would ask the head coach to say it again, or do it first and then explain it to me to make sure I understood.
My teammates also supervised my English study and asked me every day, "What did you learn today?" Sometimes they even teach me words and expressions.
There was also a time for the Lunar New Year when I invited my teammates to my home and cooked a sumptuous Chinese meal with braised pork, shrimp, skinny eggs, etc. There was quite a variety.
Thanks to the major food bloggers, many of the dishes were ready to go and busy for about two hours or so.
I also received gifts from my teammates, including a drawing of a tiger cub and a Happy New Year written in Chinese, etc. It was a very special New Year abroad.
CNN Sports x Shen Mengyu
Incentives and honors
CNS Sports: What other experiences have stood out to you during this stay?
Shen Mengyu: A game played at the Park, home of the Celtic men's soccer team, made a big impression on me and was particularly emotional.
A month before the race, we start counting down the days.
Played on other courses before, never played on a parkland course.
When we heard we could play in this stadium, our first reaction was, "Really?" Then we asked, "Who are we playing?"
I think it was mentioned before that only one game will be played in this stadium this year, so we all cherish and look forward to it.
This stadium is huge and can hold many fans.
There were about 4,000 or 5,000 spectators at the game that day, much more than usual.
It all feels especially different when you kick it up.
There was drumming and banging, and it didn't stop the whole game.
For us, it's a completely different treatment than usual (laughs).
CNS Sports: With the Celtics
women's soccer
What does it feel like to win the League Cup? What does it mean to you?
Shen Mengyu: Because it was the final, I was definitely running for the title, but when I actually got the title, I still thought it was pretty unbelievable, and I was thinking that I really did it.
There was a big crowd for that final and we celebrated after the game by interacting with the fans and doing our signature dance, which was a great feeling.
It was not even a few months after the stay and I think it was a very good start.
This championship is also an incentive to just try to win every race after that.
CNS Sports: Do you often have Chinese fans cheering you on live abroad?
Shen Mengyu: It's true that there are often, I remember there was a Chinese fan who was very cute and came to every game before.
Then she was going back to her home country and prepared a small book for me with photos of me at various moments in time, with great care.
My teammates were envious when they saw it and were joking with each other, "Look at the other fans."
And many Chinese fans over here told me that whenever they are free, they will definitely come to the venue to support me.
I find it particularly heartwarming.
CNN Sports x Shen Mengyu
Soccer Affair and Role Models
CNS Sports: How did you get involved with soccer as a kid and go on to play professionally? Which players do you like?
Shen Mengyu: The elementary school near my home is a special soccer school with a strong soccer atmosphere, and there are often many star players coming to campus to interact with us.
I used to play soccer with a bunch of boys back then.
I do love the feeling of playing soccer, it's a great feeling to be in a team where we work together for a goal and we celebrate together when we win.
Then after discussing with my parents about taking the career path, my dad was calmer and let me make my own decision after analyzing some aspects for me.
I especially like Modric, and when I was a kid I used to love watching the
Wu Lei (1979-), Chinese footballer
Kicked the ball when he was still with Shanghai Dongya period.
At the time I thought.
Wu Lei (1979-), Chinese footballer
So good, scored a lot of goals and felt like he was glowing on the field, was everywhere on the field and was a model to follow.
I also admire him for making the decision to stay in the country, it took courage.
CNS Sports: How did you decide to stay in China? What kind of opportunity made you take this brave step?
Shen Mengyu: The idea of staying in the ocean appeared in my mind a long time ago, I'm not the kind of person who sticks to the rules, it happens that Celtic gave me this opportunity, I think I can try.
Before I stayed in the ocean, I discussed the difference between staying in the ocean and playing domestically with my sisters in the Shanghai team, and carefully analyzed the pros and cons.
At that time, my sisters also said that there is nothing that young people dare not try, young people should dare to do.
However, I still say that staying in the ocean doesn't apply to everyone, and that you must think about what you want before you take this step and then make a decision.
For me, physical play is an area where I'm lacking, and the league here is very confrontational, so I wanted to come and try and make up for my deficiencies.
CNS Sports: what are the expectations and plans for the future?
Shen Mengyu: No one doesn't want to wear "Chinese red", I hope I can wear it!
women's soccer
The national team's uniforms fight it out on the field.
However, there is still a certain distance between himself and his sisters, and to realize the conditions of this wish, he still has to keep improving himself and continue to work hard!
