By David Gold
September 10 – A group of young Chinese footballers are heading to Portugal to participate in a two year programme as part of their “Future Star” initiative which aims to improve football in the country.
The squad of 24 Chinese players will be split between up to nine Portuguese sides in their Second and Third Divisions, as part of the scheme that will see the Chinese Football Association (CFA) send more than 500 youngsters to Europe by 2016.
China hope the initiative will see many of the players sent to Europe competing for places in the national team for the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games and the 2018 Russian World Cup and beyond.
CFA vice chief Wei Di said: “The CFA sent a group of youngsters to Brazil in 1990s, among them a lot of players that emerged as the elite of Chinese soccer, and some even play nowadays in their 30s.
“It will be very hard for Chinese soccer to improve without high standard training for the players.
“Therefore we listed youth development as a priority of the CFA’s work and launched the ‘Future Star’ overseas programme last year.
“We are looking for cooperation with more companies, whether through sending players overseas or lifting the standard of domestic youth training.
“Chinese soccer has taken a wrong path in recent years, resulting in declining credibility and attendance.
“We must recognise the problems and catch up over the next 10 years.”
China has traditionally under performed at international level for a country of their size, and their only performance at a World Cup came in 2002 when they lost all three games at the group stage to eventual champions Brazil, Turkey and Costa Rica.
They have since finished as the runners up in the Asian Cup in 2004, but their performance in the tournament this year was dire, winning just one match and going out at the group stage to 2022 World Cup hosts Qatar and Uzbekistan.
They have recently appointed veteran Spanish and former Real Madrid coach José Antonio Camacho (pictured) as the national team boss, and are currently 69th in the FIFA world rankings.
Like Russia, Qatar and Brazil, China has profited in recent times from the injection of new money into the country’s football scene.
Real estate company Dalian Wanda announced a $47 million (£29.5 million/€34 million) donation to support CFA youth programmes earlier this year, and property tycoon Xu Jiayin has bankrolled Guangzhou Evergrande, who pulled off the most significant transfer in Chinese football history this year when they signed Argentine playmaker Darío Conca – last year’s Brazilian player of the year – from Brasileiro champions Fluminense.
Sun Jihai, one of China’s most successful football exports, who enjoyed a spell at Manchester City in the Premier League, said: “I hope they will go abroad with an open mind, see more, listen more, and learn more, to integrate into the local communities.
“They should learn Portuguese and play with youngsters from all over the world in Portugal.
“Without communication, it’s just like a man without a leg; you cannot walk or run fast.
“It’s a precious opportunity for the young players since ample capital support will ensure them a good lifestyle overseas, and I believe a lot of them will become key members of local clubs and the national team in the future.”
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