As Guangzhou's first phase of the Chinese Super League (CSL) season came to an end in October, Coach Cannavaro surprisingly parted ways with the team. In an interview on the Guangdong Radio and Television Sports Channel, he shared the "secret" of spending time with the team, admitting that it doesn't matter how he gets along with players with personalities like Wei Shihao, it's all up to his own sincerity and genuineness. Talking about which player in the team is expected to stay in the ocean, his eyes fell on Gao Junyi.
Facing young players such as Tan Kaiyuan, Wu Shaocong and Yang Liyu, Cannavaro said bluntly, "I am nothing special, just through hard practice and serious attitude. Maybe some people think I'm young and inexperienced, but that's exactly what makes me different from other coaches. Many big name coaches come to China late in their careers, perhaps having proved themselves in other countries, and come to China just to spend time. With their previous achievements, they have been able to try at their own pace in our country. The difference for me is that my desire for self-improvement is probably stronger and my focus is more, not only do I want to get better, but I also want the team and every player to improve."
As a young coach, it is vital to maintain good communication with players. The reporter specifically asked about the team's personality player Wei Shihao. Cannavaro said: "Wei Shihao is undoubtedly a talented player, this is what we call a genius, a player with talent. I impressed him through sincerity. I would tell him: 'There are perhaps many foreign or naturalized players in front of you in your position playing similar positions, and if you want to get a chance to play, you have to prove to me in training that you can complete the tasks assigned to you. As long as you are able to accomplish and prove it, I can guarantee you a match opportunity.'' Wei Shihao did that in both matches and training, and I did give him a chance. Of course, he also achieved good results, and this was more because of my sincere attitude, which made Wei Shihao respect me more, and I will respect him as well. Not only Wei Shihao, I'm very sincere with Zheng Zhi and Ackerson, I'll tell them honestly what I think, what's going on in the team and discuss together how to go about it."
Cannavaro also talked about a few very talented players in the team: "Yan Dinghao would have been selected for the national team for the World Qualifier by now if he hadn't suffered a serious injury. After Deng Hanwen came to Guangzhou, his position has been Zhang Linpeng. Zhang Linpeng's physical condition is fully capable of playing in the European league. At present, Gao Junyi's technical level is fully capable of playing in Europe, where the intensity of the game and scrambling is much higher than in the Chinese Super League, and Gao Junyi is able to adapt."
