Overnight, an ordinary football match in the Provincial Games became the topic of Chinese football’s “high fever”.
htmlOn August 7, in the men’s Group B A final of the 16th Guangdong Provincial Sports Games, Guangzhou team trailed 1-3 and chased 4 goals in the second half, eventually defeating Qingyuan team 5-3. , won the championship. This game, which was broadcast live online, caused a lot of discussion from the outside world because there were many doubts during the game. To this end, the Chinese Football Association officially announced on August 8 that it would intervene in the investigation.
The players involved are from Evergrande Football School
The two sides in the final were the Guangzhou team and the host Qingyuan team. The Guangzhou team took the lead in scoring in the 18th minute, but the Qingyuan team scored three goals in the first half and ended the first half with a 3-1 lead. In the second half, the situation on the field suddenly changed, especially after the substitutions between the two teams. The Guangzhou team actually scored four goals in 12 minutes from the 64th to the 76th minute. Judging from the game, the Guangzhou team scored four goals in the second half. Except for the first penalty kick, the next three goals were not effectively blocked by the opponent. Some goals were even scored while the opponent's players watched. It's very puzzling.
In this Guangdong Provincial Games, the Qingyuan team U15 is the Evergrande Football School U15 team. It is reported that the overall strength of the Evergrande Football School U15 team is outstanding among the same age group in Guangdong Province. In the Guangdong Governor's Cup (the highest level youth football competition in Guangdong Province) in May 2022, the Evergrande Football School U15 team won the men's Group B A championship with a victory in five games. They won 4 to 1 respectively. Defeated Shenzhen Luohu, defeated Guangzhou No. 5 Middle School Football Association 5-3, defeated Zhongshan Sports Education Bureau 5-0, swept Meizhou Hakka 9-0, and defeated R&F Football School 4-0. The Guangzhou No. 5 Middle School Football Association is the U15 team jointly built by Guangzhou Football Association and Guangzhou No. 5 Middle School. In last year's " Evergrande Star Cup", Evergrande Football School sent the 2007 second team and defeated the Genbao 2007 team, which is known for its high level of youth training, 3-1. It can be seen that the overall strength of Evergrande Football School in the 2007 age group is quite advantageous, and it is also the age group team that Evergrande Football School focuses on cultivating after significantly reducing the size of the school.
Of course, the Guangzhou Football Association’s U15 team is not bad either. The Guangzhou U15 players participating this time are mainly students from some key local football schools in Guangzhou. They are one of the few teams in Guangdong Province that can compete with Evergrande Football School. 1, but its overall strength is still slightly inferior to its opponents.
The coaches of the two teams were once brothers in the same school.
The Guangzhou U15 team not only came back to win the championship, but also won the "Sportsmanship Award". The team's head coach Cai Jingyuan won the title of "Excellent Coach" in the event. He said that the team had put in a lot during the preparation period for the Provincial Games. He thanked the Guangzhou Football Association for its support and concern for the team, and thanked the players for their hard work in training and competition. I continue to break through myself, and winning this championship is a wonderful memory. It is hoped that in the future, the Guangzhou Football Association echelon can cultivate more outstanding talents for the provincial team and the national team step by step, and help the development of Chinese football.
Cai Jingyuan is a native of Guangzhou. Baidu entry shows that he was born on January 1, 1987. As a teenager, Cai Jingyuan participated in the 2003 City Games on behalf of the youth echelon of the Guangzhou Football Association. In the summer of 2004, he and another teammate were selected by the Bristol Club in the UK and went to the UK to participate in training, learning and playing football. It was not until the 2010 Asian Games that the Guangzhou Football Association asked him to come back to participate in the preparations for the Asian Games. When
was a player, Cai Jingyuan played for Guangdong Rizhiquan and Shenzhen Kaisa, but he did not make any splash. The most talked about thing about him is that while playing for Sun Spring, he played as a translator in the 2013 Chinese League One away game against Shijiazhuang Yongchang and scored a goal, stopping the team's losing streak.
The head coach of the Qingyuan U15 team is also a native of Guangzhou, but is much more famous, Li Zifei. It is reported that Li Zifei has worked at Evergrande Football School for many years and is responsible for youth training and has brought out many good talents. Li Zifei, who was born in 1975, started in Guangzhou Songri as a player and played for Guangzhou Songri , Guangzhou Sun Gods, Wuhan Optics Valley, Shanghai United City and other teams. After 2006, he went to the Hong Kong Super League. Li Zifei's career started from a very high point.In 1995, he played in the professional league for the first time and won the top scorer in Class A and B. He was considered a rare high center forward in southern football at that time. However, due to the downturn of Guangzhou football in the late 1990s, Li Zifei's subsequent career trajectory was not as expected. In 2006, when he was playing for Shanghai United City, he was suspected of "abnormal performance" in a match against Tianjin TEDA and was transferred to the reserve team by the club. Shortly thereafter, Li Zifei went to the Hong Kong Super League to develop.
It can be said that Li Zifei and Cai Jingyuan can be regarded as brothers in Guangzhou football. The two teams have a deep relationship, but the current investigation results of the Football Association do not substantively point out which link caused the problem. Therefore, it is not yet time to draw a conclusion. Relevant personnel from the Guangzhou Football Association were also on site to supervise the game. The repercussions caused by this game will surely attract the attention of relevant local departments. Regardless of the final result, the outside world should try to be as tolerant as possible to the "little players involved". They may have been adversely affected, but children of this age also need opportunities to correct and change.
The Football Association's investigation has made initial progress
html On August 7, the Chinese Football Association announced that in the football final of the Guangdong Provincial Games, the performance of athletes from both sides on the field was widely questioned by public opinion and aroused concern from all walks of life. The Chinese Football Association attaches great importance to this and has launched an investigation process. It will form an investigation team including the Competition Department, the Discipline Inspection Department, and other departments to go to Guangzhou to conduct an investigation on August 8.The Chinese Football Association also stated that the Chinese Football Association has always attached great importance to and paid close attention to various gambling, match-fixing, match-fixing and other behaviors that seriously violate sports ethics and corrupt the industry. The principle of fair play will be dealt with seriously. The Chinese Football Association also hopes that all sectors of society can actively report to the Chinese Football Association, public security, and judicial departments if they find relevant and conclusive evidence.
It is reported that on August 8, the Chinese Football Association summoned some relevant people such as Evergrande Football School and Guangzhou Football Association in Guangzhou to inquire about the relevant situation. However, there has been no response from the parties concerned so far. The outside world's expectations for the Chinese Football Association to find out the truth are not high. After all, there are many problems in Chinese football and public opinion is at a low period.
According to people familiar with Guangzhou football, the Guangzhou Football Association has had a very close relationship with Evergrande Football School in recent years. After Evergrande Football massively reduced its investment, Evergrande Football School also encountered great difficulties in running the school and its future. Under this situation, the two sides have recently carried out a series of cooperation. For example, many football school students have begun to enroll in Guangzhou schools, but their daily reading training is still at Evergrande Football School. For example, Zhang Linyan, a player of the Chinese women's national football team , had been at Evergrande Football School before, but just two years ago she suddenly became an athlete in Guangzhou. Therefore, there are voices from the outside world that the future of Evergrande Football School players cannot be separated from the support of the Guangzhou Football Association.
