Chinanews.com, Beijing, March 7th (Liu Xingchen) #国足走起沙圣#, this slightly dramatic hashtag has been read more than 250 million times, and its popularity remains undiminished.
From the second most searched topic last night to the sharp increase in the number of interactions this morning, this matter has been hotly discussed for more than 10 hours.
Image source: Screenshot of Weibo topic
In the World Cup in Qatar at the end of last year, the Saudi team was the only team that defeated the new champion Argentina, and it has countless fans.
If you just look at the hashtag, many people may have a little surprise in their minds: National Football Team, is it dawn?
But after really understanding its content, there is a complex emotion wrapped in loss, helplessness, and expectation in my heart.
What happened
The protagonist of the game mentioned in the topic is not the national football team that everyone ridicules every day, but the U20 national football team, which is the "national youth team" in the mouth of old fans.
Data map: Saudi players celebrate a goal at the World Cup in Qatar
On the evening of the 6th, the U20 Men's Football Asian Cup Group D match was held.
In the last round of group matches, the U20 national football team suffered a 1:2 reversal from the Japanese team.
In this campaign, with the two goals of Muta Lifu and Xu Bin, coupled with goalkeeper Li Hao's high-speed defense, the U20 national football team defeated Saudi Arabia U20 2:0, won the first victory in the group and gained the initiative to qualify.
This is the whole story of the "National Football Team Winning Saudi Arabia" incident. Although the topic is a bit joking, the meaning behind the victory is indeed worth exploring.
Image source: Chinese Football Team Weibo
"Our minimum goal is to get out of the group, and I think the Chinese team can do it." This is the U20 national football coach Antonio's words after the game.
When reviewing the game, Antonio said: "I am very happy for this group of boys under me. They gave every effort to every ball. Our team played a very good game."
You know, the Saudi team was the champion of the previous tournament, and the top four teams in this tournament will advance to this year's Indonesia U20 World Cup (World Youth Championship). The U20 national football team has been away from this stage for 18 years.
Fans' Surprise and Helplessness
"Our young people have been absent from the World Series stage for too long" "Long-lost surprise"...
Image source: Screenshot of netizens’ comments
Although this national football team is not the other national football team, many fans are still surprised by this young U20 team by defending the victory when the overall strength is weak.
In this team, 4 players got a certain chance to play in the Super League last season and were widely recognized.
In order to better prepare for this Asian Cup, the U20 national football team completed the assembly at the end of last year, and went to the United Arab Emirates and Croatia for overseas training at the beginning of this year.
All in all, it is hard to say that achieving victory is easy, and the road to success is by no means smooth.
In the FIFA world rankings, the Saudi team has quietly risen to 49th, while the national football team only ranks 80th.
In other words, at the level of the national team in the true sense, there is already a certain strength gap between the two teams.
Image source: screenshot of FIFA website
Image source: screenshot of FIFA website
Image source: screenshot of FIFA website
Speaking of Saudi football, its rise is also full of bitterness.
"Golden Dollar Football" and "The Road to Studying Abroad", after several trials and errors, the Saudi Football Association learned from the painful experience and no longer sought shortcuts.
While limiting the salaries of league players, they began to vigorously develop youth training and invited the Frenchman Renard as the head coach.
In recent years, Saudi Arabia's domestic league has developed rapidly, which can be seen from the performance of Saudi clubs in the AFC Champions League.
The league is booming and the Football Association has delegated power to teams. Against this background, Saudi football has entered the world football stage with a new identity.
Behind this, perhaps the helpless sighs of the national football fans.
Compared with our opponents, we still have a long way to go.
Image source: Screenshot of netizens’ comments
Image source: Screenshot of netizens’ comments
But as the fans said, "If you can win, there is hope."
For Chinese football, which is currently in a trough, this seemingly inconspicuous victory seems somewhat timely.
In this Asian Cup, the U20 national football team was divided into the death group. Now it is not easy to grasp the initiative to qualify.
Looking at the technical statistics of the game, the U20 national football team does not have an advantage in many aspects. They mainly focus on defensive counterattacks and seized the few opportunities with good efficiency.
Such a scene can not help but remind people of the Japanese team in the World Cup in Qatar.
Saudi U20 coach Mohammadi also recognized the Chinese team's performance in the counterattack from the side, "We created a lot of opportunities in the game, but we were unlucky."
Image source: Screenshot of netizens’ comments
the meaning of victory
It is gratifying to win the game, but it also provides more ideas for the future development of Chinese football.
From the analysis of the game process, young Chinese players still have a certain gap with Asian strong players in terms of basic skills and physical fitness.
However, through training and tactical formulation, the team is polishing itself and improving its strength in the game.
The day of the victory over Saudi Arabia U20 was the 19th birthday of Li Hao, the U20 goalkeeper of the national football team. He played well and attended the post-match press conference.
On the day of victory in the green field, when the youth is in high spirits.
From Muta Lifu, Xu Bin, to Li Hao, the outstanding performance of a group of young players is undoubtedly a good signal.
A few days ago, Jankovic's new Chinese men's football roster was announced, and the players' age was widely questioned by the outside world.
If young players can gain winning experience in the game, it will be even more worth looking forward to over time.
Image source: Chinese Football Team Weibo
After this victory, the U20 national football team will face the Kyrgyzstan team, which has lost both games so far, on March 9.
Regardless of the process, at least this time, the young lads have firmly grasped the initiative to decide their destiny.
(over)