In this Asian Games feast, Chinese fans of the double bitter than witnessed the men's and women's soccer and men's basketball dream journey. The men's soccer team was defeated by South Korea 0-2 in the last eight, but it is still a normal play; the women's soccer team met with the youthful Japan U-23 women's soccer team in the semifinals, with an average age of less than 22 years old to defeat their opponents; while the men's basketball team was defeated by the Philippine second team with a weak disadvantage of 76-77 in the semifinals. Such a three-line setback, undoubtedly let those three lines and the Chinese fans heart like a knife. Although the men's soccer team lost the game, it also showed its proper standard; the loss of the women's soccer team is even more sobering; the loss of the men's basketball team is so painful that people can't let go of it.
The men's soccer team, with 20 years of chastisement and anticipation, has been rewarded with disappointment after disappointment. Fans don't expect much from them and even laugh at themselves after a loss. However, the recent performances of the women's soccer and men's basketball teams have left fans seething with anger. This outburst of emotion is a true reflection of their disappointment. Today, fans can't help but wonder if we are asking too much of our national soccer team.
While the women's soccer team has struggled to grow due to market factors, the men's basketball team's attention and market value does not match its performance. What's more, the men's basketball team has canceled press conferences after games and then reinstated them, which certainly shows the world how embarrassed we are. The men's soccer team, on the other hand, has never canceled a press conference even after years of being chastised. Is the men's basketball team feeling aggrieved or disgruntled by this move? Their capriciousness is baffling.
Fans are asking too much of the national soccer team, which is really a conclusion drawn from comparisons with men's basketball. Soccer is highly competitive, with more than 100 countries and regions specializing globally; Asia is even better. It is not easy for our soccer to be at the top of more than 200 member associations. Basketball, on the other hand, is less specialized, with only 4 or 5 professionalized regions in Asia, and the men's basketball team is in a relatively more marginal position.
The men's soccer team, like high school students surrounded by college students, has been at a disadvantage against college students. Our country has invested heavily in basketball, expecting to make the men's basketball team top-notch, but its recent performance has been like being bullied by elementary school students. The performance of men's basketball is not proportional to the investment and attention. Although the men's soccer team's performance has also been disappointing, the competitive pressure of soccer is so great that it is good enough to advance to the Elite Eight. The men's basketball team, on the other hand, even failed to reach the finals in a region with less competitive pressure in Asia, which really deserves our deep thoughts.
