The new pattern of "one super, four first, four b" has tested the youth training of Guangdong football even more

Reporter Wang Wei reports When combing the map of the professional league, the outside world found that if they can successfully pass the access gate of the 2025 season, then next season Guangdong football will have 9 professional teams to participate in the Chinese Super League, China League A and China B three-level professional leagues, namely the Chinese Super League team Shenzhen Xinpeng City, the Chinese League team Meizhou Hakka, Guangzhou team, Foshan South Lions, Guangdong Guangzhou Leopard, and the second team Shenzhen Youth, Shenzhen 2028, Guangdong Mingtu and Guangzhou Anhua.

Although the situation of "one super, four first, four b" in Guangdong football is difficult to compare with the four Chinese Super League teams of Guangzhou team, Guangzhou R&F, Shenzhen team and Meizhou Hakka at the same time in previous years, but the new pattern built on the basis of high-quality youth training also makes Guangdong football show the characteristics of a more rational structure and a more sustainable development path.

October 27, 2024, this day is a very special day for Guangdong football. In the afternoon of the same day, Guangdong Mingtu and Guangzhou Anhua defeated their opponents with penalties in the two battles for the second and successfully won the second game. Coupled with Shenzhen 2028, which has been promoted to the second division ahead of schedule, Guangdong football has achieved a bumper harvest in the Chinese Champions League this season, and three Guangdong Chinese championship teams have been successfully promoted to the second division.

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On the evening of October 27, the U16 national team (U16 National Junior Team) drew 2-2 with South Korea U16 and qualified for next year's U17 Asian Cup as the second in the group. It is worth noting that 12 of the 23-man squad in that game were from Guangdong, of which 6 Guangdong players started and the other 2 came off the bench, and Wei Xiangxin, who was trained by Meizhou Hakka, scored 1 goal.

Recently, the U16 national junior team and the U15 national junior team announced a new training list, and the youth training results of Guangdong football jumped on: in the 35-man squad of the U16 national junior team, 13 players are from Guangdong, including 6 from Evergrande Football School, 3 from Meizhou Hakka, 3 from Guangzhou Leopard in Guangdong, and 1 from the High School Affiliated to South China Normal University; In the 25-member roster of the U15 national junior team, 6 are from Evergrande Football School, 2 are from Meizhou Hakka, and Kwong Zhaolei from Damu Football Club is also from Guangzhou.

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Judging from the source of players in the national echelon and the situation of "one super, four first, four b", the youth training work of Guangdong football over the years has entered the harvest period. First of all, from the perspective of the three new Guangdong football teams that have successfully rushed to the second level, the age structure of the players of Guangzhou Anhua, Shenzhen 2028 and Guangdong Mingtu has spanned three age groups, which happens to be related to the combination of high-level youth training and professional football club construction in Guangdong football in recent years.

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Among them: the Shenzhen 2028 team is a player born in 2005 and 2006, mainly trained by the Shenzhen Football Association (Shenzhen Football Youth Training Center), plus the players of Shenzhen Kaisa Echelon, R&F Guangzhou Youth Training, R&F Football School, Foshan Youth Training, plus some players introduced from other provinces, the average age of this year is 19 years old; Guangdong Mingtu players are basically based on the 2007/08 age group, the average age of the whole team this year is 17 years old, and the 2007 age group players from R&F Youth Training and Evergrande Football School are gathered together for training, including echelon players from Shenzhen Football Association, Meizhou City, Guangzhou Football Association, Meizhou Hakka, such as Wei Xiangxin from Meizhou Hakka echelon; Guangzhou Anwar's players are mainly from the R&F echelon, some from Evergrande Football School, mainly from the 2003/04 age group, the average age of the main players this year is about 21 years old, and this year's Champions League has added several players around 30 years old.

The main players of these three new teams from Guangdong cover the age group from 17 to 21 years old, plus the Guangdong players in the U15 and U16 national junior teams, indicating that from the five or six age groups from 15 to 21 years old, a group of young players with great potential have emerged in Guangdong football. It can be said that in the past few years, Evergrande Football School, Guangzhou R&F Youth Training, Meizhou Hakka Youth Training, Shenzhen Kaisa Youth Training and the talent training system of national youth training centers in Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Meizhou have laid a solid foundation for the emergence of Guangdong football reserve talents.

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In the just-concluded first National Youth Three Ball Games, the Guangdong men's football U18 team is mainly formed by the Guangdong Mingtu U17 team, which is the key football team in Guangdong Province, although it only finished fifth, but this team also has its distinctive characteristics: first of all, the team is mainly based on the Guangdong Mingtu U17 team, plus the Guangzhou Football Association, Shenzhen 2028, Meizhou Hakka, Guangzhou Leopard, Guangzhou team, R&F Football School and other teams of school-age youth, emerging Wei Xiangxin, Tang Tianyi, Zhang Zhixiong and other young talents, It is the result of the diversification of the football reserve talent training system in Guangdong Province; The second is the team's style of play and delicate skills, which well reflects the style and characteristics of southern football, and the future is promising.

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Shenzhen 2028 and Guangdong Mingtu are both participating teams in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area National Games next year, at that time, Guangdong will take Shenzhen 2028 as the main team to participate in the U20 group of the National Games, and Guangdong Mingtu as the main team to participate in the U18 group. Xie Changjing, chairman of the Guangdong Football Association, said: "The continuous emergence and growth of these Guangdong football youth players reflects that Guangdong football is showing a vigorous and upward momentum of development with the efforts of generations of football people. ”

At the end of 2022 and the beginning of 2023, Guangzhou football fell into a low ebb, first the Guangzhou team was relegated in the Chinese Super League in the 2022 season, and then at the beginning of 2023, Guangzhou R&F Football Club announced the suspension of operations, however, the huge investment of these two clubs in youth training is now beginning to show results.

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In the past, Evergrande Football School cooperated with Real Madrid, R&F Football School cooperated with Chelsea and Ajax, and the players who spent a lot of money to train these two clubs are now not only playing in many teams in Guangdong, but also have their shadows in many club echelons outside Guangdong Province, such as Tang Tianyi, who performed well in Guangzhou Leopards this year, is from the R&F youth training system, and the other players in the team, such as Ai Chuwei, Huang Shenghao, Jiang Zhixin, Yang Zhanpeng, Li Qitao, Yao Jiahong and other players are from the R&F youth training echelon. Including Yan Yuzhe, who was selected for the U16 national junior team as a student of the High School Affiliated to South China Normal University, was also trained by R&F Youth Training that year.

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There are more players trained from Evergrande Football School, and the representative of them is the Guangzhou team composed of Evergrande Football School youth training products. In the 2024 season, the average age of the Guangzhou team is only 20.3 years old, making it the youngest team in the Chinese League. In the 2024 season, the youth team finished third in the Central League with 52 points. The Guangzhou team is gradually getting better under the tutelage of head coach Salvador, and the distinctive passing and control style of play is gradually taking shape, the transmission is smooth, the cooperation is wonderful, and the offensive football is pleasing to the eye. Although the Guangzhou team is only one step away from returning to the Chinese Super League, from last year's "full football school class" relegation, and then this year's suspense to extend the suspense to the last round of the league, this young Guangzhou team has repaid the support and expectations of the outside world with progress, and Zhang Zhixiong, Bai Yutao and Wu Yongqiang in the team were selected for their outstanding performance and were selected for the U19 national team.

If the relegation of the Guangzhou team from the Chinese Super League and the cessation of operation of the R&F team closed a door for Guangdong football, then it can now be said that their original youth training has now opened a window for Guangdong football and Chinese football.

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Today, the youth training model of Evergrande Football School and Meizhou Hakka continues to operate, although they have also encountered financial difficulties. Over the past five years, the club's investor Wang Gang has invested more than 30 million yuan to create a unique and high-level youth training by inviting foreign coaches and football into the campus and other sports and education integration methods.

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This year, Mingtu cooperated with the Guangdong U17 men's football team to participate in the China Champions League in the name of Guangdong Mingtu, and won the second success.

In addition to the youth training model of professional football clubs, over the years, the national football youth training centers in Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Meizhou are also an important source of youth players in Guangdong.

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Ou Chuliang, vice chairman of the Guangzhou Football Association and director of youth training, gave a detailed introduction to the current functional structure, competition system, venue conditions and development layout of the Guangzhou Football Association on carrying out youth training at the recent youth football training and technical exchange meeting in the Greater Bay Area. He said that the Guangzhou Football Association relies on a good youth training tradition and the current relatively sound youth training conditions, and will lay out and promote it in three aspects in the future: the first is to deepen the integration of sports and education, the second is to build a district-level youth training center that meets the standards, and the third is to improve the training plan for football professionals such as coaches, referees, and medical personnel, taking into account the professional training within and outside the level, and paying special attention to psychological and physical training.

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The goal of the Shenzhen Football Association is also ambitious and far-reaching, and the Shenzhen 2028 team is their main starting point.

Shenzhen 2028 is one of the echelons that the Shenzhen Football Association focuses on building, and the team's short-term goal is to participate in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area National Games next year, and strive to achieve excellent results for the Guangdong delegation.

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The head coach of Shenzhen 2028 is Chinese football legend Wang Baoshan, and 2024 is his second year leading the team. In order to make this team continue to develop, Wang Baoshan even rejected the invitation to be the head coach of a Chinese Super League team, and concentrated on leading the team to a higher level of platform.

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Shenzhen 2028 won the championship of two important competitions this year, the first is the champion of the 2024 Chinese Football Association Youth Football Championship (member association group) U19, and the second is the champion of this year's China Champions League.

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After nearly two years of training, the team led by Wang Baoshan has fast offensive and defensive speed, strong overall strength, and this year's two championships are just their phased achievements, and their major mission is the meaning of the team's name "2028" - to train age-appropriate players for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games, and to send more outstanding players to the school-age national Olympic team in the future.

In order to cultivate this group of players, Wang Baoshan refused the invitation of the Chinese Super League team, "I think Chinese can play modern football, the players have also discussed with me whether it is okay to play like this, I said no problem, just do it, we ask the players to do a good job in which position." "At the beginning of the year, when we won the U19 championship of the Chinese Football Association Youth Championship (member association group), we played 8 games every other day, and we had five or six players running 12,000 meters per game, I think our players are no problem in terms of physical fitness, maybe our body is not as tall as the opponent, but we can fight for the second point, I ask the players to take their heads to train, game, and do it boldly, Be bold and express yourself. ”

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Throughout 2024, Shenzhen 2028 has played 70 games, and Wang Baoshan will emphasize almost every day that players should practice their skills and positional sense, "Next season we will be promoted from an amateur team to a professional team, I ask them, first of all, they must understand the truth of life, and secondly, strive to get good results in the National Games and complete the task in the Chinese Second League." Now that Guangdong's three Chinese championship teams have kicked out and entered the second league next season, these groups of children are worth looking forward to. Wang Baoshan said.

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Shenzhen 2028 players from all over the province, as well as some players from other provinces, such as Li Lehang, who won the bronze boot of the championship this year, entered the professional football training system from Foshan No. 1 Middle School Campus Football and Foshan Shadowless Foot Football Club, and the captain Luan Cheng was a member of Shenzhen Kaisa's youth training echelon, and they are all leaders in Guangdong youth training products. Luan Cheng said: "This year, we won the championship of the Chinese Championship, which helped us a lot and established our self-confidence, and I think this championship also has a great role in promoting the development of football in Guangdong." Not only our U19 team, but also Guangdong Mingtu U17 team is also very good, and I hope we will get better and better. ”

The echelon training of professional football clubs is an important part of the youth training chain, however, this model is greatly affected by the survival environment of professional football clubs, and if the survival of the club itself is in trouble, its echelon training will inevitably be affected. At present, Guangzhou and Meizhou Hakka clubs are experiencing difficulties, and if they cannot successfully pass the access barrier, it is difficult to predict how much their youth training work will be troubled.

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Judging from the investment in professional football clubs in several key football cities in Guangdong, Shenzhen has the strongest government support. According to the "Several Measures for Accelerating the Innovation and Development of the Sports Industry" issued by the Shenzhen Municipal Government in 2020, in order to build a domestic professional sports highland, professional sports clubs that register in Shenzhen and bear the name of "Shenzhen", participate in professional leagues or sign contracts with world-ranked athletes, can give a subsidy of no more than 35 million yuan per season according to the project category, influence, professional league level and investment; It is used for training bases, special equipment, competition venue rental and security funds, etc., and if excellent results are achieved in them, a reward of no more than 80 million yuan can be given; Those who are promoted to participate in the national professional league for the first time can be given a reward of no more than 20 million yuan.

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This means that Shenzhen 2028, which entered the China Second League as the champion of the Chinese Champions League this year, will receive the support and rewards of this policy. If the Shenzhen Youth Team, which won the third place in the Chinese Second League this year, can be replaced in the Chinese League, it can also receive the support and rewards of this policy. Guangzhou's professional clubs received some local subsidies this year, and Meizhou Hakka received sponsorship from Guangdong Electric Power and Xingfa Aluminum this year through the efforts of local government departments.

In addition to the financial difficulties encountered by professional clubs and the difficulties faced by access, the youth training work of Guangdong football also has hidden worries in the booming situation, for example, how to improve the level of youth coaches is a top priority, and the return of the grassroots amateur sports school training model is also worth further exploration.

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In terms of improving the level of youth coaches, in mid-November, the Guangzhou Football Association held a youth football training and technical exchange meeting in the Greater Bay Area with the theme of "football development, youth training as the root", and more than 100 people participated in the exchange meeting, and the youth coaches from the Spanish Football Club conducted technical training for the youth coaches in Guangzhou.

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In the past few years, Guangdong football has adopted the model of "please come in and go out" in youth training. Whether it is Evergrande Football School, Meizhou Hakka, or the previous R&F Youth Training, without exception, a large number of foreign youth coaches have been introduced to join, such as the Japanese coaches Kikuhara Shiro and Makoto Kametani introduced by R&F Youth Training, and Kenichi Uemura, the current U16 national junior team, has also served as the coach of the R&F youth training team. Evergrande Football School has introduced European coaches such as Spain, such as Atita, Victor, El Salvador, etc., which are successful cases, and have also cultivated many outstanding youth players. Meizhou Hakka hired Japanese coach Kawai Xue as the youth training director, and many of the players trained have been selected into the national youth teams at all levels. At present, the Meizhou Football Association has hired Japanese coach Kazutoku Inoue as the youth training director.