Reporter Liu Xiangyu reported on the new national team roster, Guangzhou team has 9 people selected, Yan Dinghao is also among them. Yan Dinghao has been selected for all levels of national brand names and served as the captain of the national Olympic team, but this is his first selection for the national team.
In this season's Chinese Super League, Yan Dinghao has played extremely well. After the first stage of the league, Yan Dinghao has completed 6 assists, he is the chinese Super League local player assist king this season, the call for his selection for the national team was very high, but unfortunately, the national team at that time did not give the 23-year-old young midfielder a chance.
Yan Dinghao has made 20 appearances this season, including 19 starts, averaging 79 minutes per game. Guangzhou team has undergone tremendous changes, Paulinho, Talisca and naturalized players have left the team, Yan Dinghao, Yang Liyu, Wei Shihao and other Mesozoic players have stepped forward, Yan Dinghao has gradually become the midfield commander of Guangzhou team, the playing style is more mature and sophisticated, and has shown enough talent on the offensive end.
After the end of the season, the reporter conducted an exclusive interview with Yan Dinghao, who summarized the season that had just ended. In his opinion, despite the twists and turns, it is a harvest season. Being selected for the national team squad is another milestone in his career, and next, he wants to play his own characteristics and strive to stay in the national team and go to a higher level.
◆ "Football": In the just-concluded 2021 season, if you are allowed to score 100 points, how many points will you give yourself?
Yan Dinghao: In fact, this season, I think I can still give myself a high score, about 75, 80 points. In the 2021 season, the team can say ups and downs, fluctuations are very large, the core of the season left the team, Paulinho, Talisca left, the tactical system gradually adjusted, to everyone gradually played a certain tacit understanding, and then to the second place in the league, ending the first stage, some changes occurred in the back group, some naturalized players also left the team, and then experienced a long period of preparation is not systematic, Zhi Ge (Zheng Zhi) took us to play the last stage, but we also completed very well. This season, personally, I've adapted to all sorts of situations and then kept myself in a good shape, so I feel worthy of that score.
◆ This season you completed 6 assists, ranking third in the assist list, in front of Oscar, Quintero, you are the homegrown assist king. Ever thought you'd have such a stat in assists?
I am a player who prefers to pass, and many times this year I also appear in the position of the back, in fact, assists are good things for me, but unfortunately there are many scoring opportunities that have not been seized this year, because there is a shortage of people in the front line of the team in the championship stage, and Zhi Ge has arranged me to a higher position and created some scoring opportunities.
◆What was the most memorable game of the season?
It was the battle at the top of the table with Shandong, when the ball was very tightly clenched, and at the end of the first half, my assist helped Yang Liyu score, and it was another game in Tianhe.
◆ What about the more regrettable game?
It is relatively regrettable that the last game hit the harbor. Because we occupied the initiative of the scene, we also got more chances to score goals than the other side, but it is true that because our forward players are young, they are a little lacking in experience and ability, and the opportunity is not seized, in fact, until the last minute we still have a chance to score, but in the end we still lose, maybe this is football, this ball is finished, we fell from the second place to the third place.
◆ I thought you would be most impressed by the game in Henan, where you completed two wonderful assists.
Yes, although there are two assists, but according to the intensity of the game, including the importance of the game, it is certain that the match with Shandong will be more valuable.
◆ Your 6 assists were basically completed in the first stage, and the second stage of the championship group game, there was no further data, what is the main reason?
You can see that in the championship group we did the best is defense, of course, we also created a lot of opportunities in the attack, but the front players are very young, especially in the later stage, only Tan Kaiyuan, Ling Jie two young players, many times their ability to grasp the opportunity will indeed be less good, such as we passed, but the ball can not score, the assist is naturally gone, this is also very normal, young players need to grow a process. To the last stage, everyone's mentality must be based on the premise of team supremacy, everyone has not thought of brushing any data or other, fans can see that we are playing very selflessly, everyone is dedicating their entire efforts to run, in order to let the team win, the ball that can be passed will never go it alone.
◆ Before the start of the championship competition, is it the most difficult stage of the Guangzhou team you have experienced?
It must be, an empty base, sometimes just a few people training, especially at the beginning, there is no coach belt, completely rely on spontaneous to maintain, or quite difficult. However, in the later stage, everyone can have such a state, which also shows that everyone is a player with high requirements for themselves and is very professional.
◆ Do you feel tired after playing this year?
The dense schedule can be handled, after all, every team is the same, so there is nothing to say. My body recovered faster, I was luckier, there were no injuries, if there were injuries, the schedule was so dense, I had to rest at least two games, which would be a pity, because every game was an accumulation of experience. The interval is too long and often needs to be readjusted, and this phase schedule will be more difficult.
◆ "Football": The new season, it is not U23, are you ready for such a change?
Yan Dinghao: In fact, I have not regarded myself as a U23 player, I have played abroad for so many years, foreign players can play in the first team at the age of seventeen or eighteen, so I have not regarded myself as a U23 player, this policy is a kind of protection for us, but I think it is not a reason for us to stop, I have always demanded myself with higher standards.
◆ Zhang Yuning is no longer a U23 player in the 2021 season, he has performed very well, you have grown up together, and your personal relationship is not bad, has his performance given you some touches?
We were all in Greentown before, he (Zhang Yuning) is definitely a player I respect in my heart, and he is a striker, I am very comfortable playing with him, I would like to have such a teammate. In the league, I saw some of his highlights, and I applauded him internally. Every time we meet, both sides encourage each other and hope that the other can be better. This time we met again in the national team, or quite looking forward to it, I hope to have some exchanges with him, including some exchanges on the ball and some exchanges in life.
◆ You have stayed in the Ocean, how do you think about the topic of staying in the Ocean now?
I've seen the outside world, and I know what level it is outside. The big five leagues, including some of the European secondary leagues, are all stages of our dreams, but it must be that you have the ability to think about it, not to say that by some other way, it is not going to improve, because we all know that it is difficult to have some big improvement just by training or just the players at the end of the bench, and we are the age that needs to play the most.
In my opinion, first of all, I have to become at least one of the best players in China, and then I have to think about staying in Yang, because I am not at this age to go out again, or I must go out to the age, I think it is not too late to think about it when I can make my ability more comprehensive through two or three years of precipitation. You look like Brother Zhi, when he stayed in Yangyang, he also went out at the age of 25, which was the most perfect and capable time for him, and he would be competitive when he went out.
◆ "Football": When you first joined the Guangzhou team, the upward momentum was particularly strong, there were very beautiful goals, almost turned out, until the game of Guoan was injured. Did that injury affect you a lot?
Yan Dinghao: I think it was a small turning point in my career. In fact, for me, that injury I have seen very lightly, because I have looked back at the game and the current game, I think now I play more mature and stable, at that time our team had Paulinho, can play with us, at the beginning I played in a more advanced position, the degree of freedom is relatively high, but really with my own best passing, ball control organization ability, in fact, now I play more mature and stable, fewer mistakes, passing more accurate, the success rate is higher.
At that time, there was indeed a certain amount of data, because at that time everyone played very smoothly, and Shun and I played very smoothly, so it was remarkable, but in fact, if I really analyzed the game by every minute, I think I would be better now. In addition, although I experienced injuries, I recovered very well, and during this time, I adjusted other aspects of my body to a better state, so I did not see the injury as a setback or anything, I felt that I had precipitated during that time, and after that time, I would have higher requirements for myself.
◆ You are a player who is particularly good at thinking and summarizing, and you can calmly analyze some of your own problems every time.
Now that it 's happened, I wonder if I can minimize the impact and give me some boost in other ways.
◆ Guangzhou team has a lot of big-name foreign aides before, including like Talisca, Paulinho, playing around Paulinho, can you also learn a lot of better ways to handle the ball?
Right. Paulinho has played for too many big clubs, including my favourite Barcelona, and I often talk to him and I ask him how he plays at Barca? He's surrounded by teammates like Iniesta, Xavi, including Busquets, and we talk about that a lot. He appreciates me and trusts me very much, he will definitely give me the ball, we get along in a good way, on the pitch, he will make me more confident, will always encourage me, let me show my own things.
◆ When these big-name foreign aides of the Guangzhou team, including naturalized players, left the team, did you feel that your role and identity had changed a little?
I think there are changes in these few of us, we are already middle-aged players in guangzhou, we all need to take on more responsibilities on our shoulders, but everyone's position is different, the responsibilities need to be different.
◆ Cannavaro said in an interview before that he has always regarded you as Zheng Zhi's successor in training, and now Zheng Zhi is leading the team, what is the communication between you and Zheng Zhi, and what are his requirements for you?
First of all, I will not think of myself as the successor of Zhi Ge, but Zhi Ge is definitely a benchmark in our minds, and what he does, bit by bit, we will all learn, will imitate, he is a very good example. From the first day of zhi ge leading the team to the last day of the game, I was one of the first few players to practice with zhi ge. In fact, we don't have much communication, almost all of them are in the professional field, all in the aspect related to the ball. In the last stage, our staff was very tight, he needed to use the existing staffing to do the tactical arrangement of each game, so you can see that we actually played 5 different formations in 8 games, and I also played four or five different positions, and I think this is a new requirement for me, and it is also a trust in me.
◆ With Zheng Zhi in the team, will there be a main backbone, and everyone is more confident?
Yes, you can feel that whether we play or not, our combat effectiveness must be there, including the strength of each game, running data, we will not lose to the opponent, no matter who the opponent is.
◆Football: Cannavaro is your mentor, right?
Yan Dinghao: Yes, it must be.
◆ When he left, you still posted goodbye on your social media, can you talk about the influence Cannavaro has influenced you?
He brought me to Guangzhou, and I am very grateful to him. Because he knew me when I was very young, discovered me, and then liked my type of player. After I came to Evergrande, he gave me a lot of confidence, including giving me a certain amount of time to adapt to the team, adapt to the rhythm of the Chinese Super League and the AFC Champions League matches, did not say that it was used at the beginning, or that it was completely useless as soon as it came up, gave me a certain amount of time, and slowly let me adjust to the best state and gradually adapt.
Later I experienced a very serious injury, he gave me a lot of time to find confidence again, to find the rhythm again, he has always been very protective of me, many times he may also want me to play, but he is afraid of my injury recurrence, so he made the most reasonable choice, I understand his idea, he wants me to be able to have a better performance this season. I feel like my performance today also deserves his trust in me.
◆ Which of Cannavaro's interactions with you impressed you the most? What did he tell you?
In fact, many times he doesn't have to tell me too much, I can understand his intentions and meanings. This season, we had a game against Guangzhou City, and it ended up being 3-3, the other side had a goal, the process was that we were going to play counter-attack, I passed the ball back to the goalkeeper, some of the passes were bigger, and after the goalkeeper broke out, just let the opponent form a counterattack and scored, they equalized with that ball. After the game, Cannavaro talked to me alone, and he told me that we were leading the score at that time, and with your ability, you should have better choices and handling, and should not give the opponent another chance to fight back.
In fact, I also watched a lot of replays at the time, and I didn't think there was a problem with my choice at first, but then he said something, he said that a game like this, with the ability of you and your teammates around you, you should be in this position, you should be able to complete such a game "with a cigarette". On the one hand, this shows that he recognizes me very much, and at the same time hopes that we have more and better options, and the requirement for me is that I can do my best, and he also wants to make me more confident.
◆ What was Cannavaro's biggest change to you on the pitch?
He told me to keep some of my original characteristics and advantages, including like my forward pass, passing the threat of the ball, there will be mistakes, but he is all encouraging, his idea is, as long as your consciousness and ideas are right, don't be afraid of mistakes. But if you take some risks or make some mistakes in midfield, then he may criticize you very harshly, because then you will give your opponent a lot of opportunities.
◆ After Caravaro left, did you communicate with him again?
We have a lot of communication and I will care about his future and he will also give me some advice. We all communicated in English.
◆"Football": When did you know who was selected for the national team?
Yan Dinghao: A few days before the list came out, because the relevant people contacted me and asked me for clothing sizes.
◆ When you learn this news, who will share it with you first?
with parents and family. Because I know that this time is the big list of training, so I am not too excited or excited, I know very well that I will definitely pass the performance of the training in Shanghai and finally impress the coaching team, so it is possible to be shortlisted for the final list, so I need to continue to work hard.
◆ You have performed well in this year's league, especially in the top of the assists data, feel that this selection is a matter of course?
The overall performance of the league is very good, in the last stage, in fact, my expectations for being able to enter the big list were very high, but I did not enter that time, which felt very regrettable. I am also very grateful for the recognition of the national team coaching staff for being selected this time.
◆ As a newcomer, what kind of attitude will you hold when you are selected for the national team training team for the first time?
Young players must be able to do a good job of themselves, do a good job in every training session, and be able to perform well in training and intra-team competitions, so that they can impress the coaching staff and win more opportunities for themselves.
◆ In what area do you think you have impressed the coaching staff of the national football team with your performance in the league?
I think it should be a continuous and stable play. I think my overall performance this year is pretty good, except for two games off due to injury, almost everything else has been played. The overall performance of passing, defending, and attacking in each game is relatively stable, and there are some assist data, running, passing success rate, and number of passes, which can reflect the play of this season.
◆ Guangzhou team in fact, there are quite a lot of international footballers, when selected for the national team, have you communicated with the guangzhou team's international team, what should you pay attention to when going to the national team?
I didn't communicate too much, because my adaptability is still relatively strong, to the national team is equivalent to a new group, I think it is actually more of a football thing, I don't care too much about some other aspects.
◆ You have been selected for all levels of national brands, and you have also been the captain, I feel that being selected for the national football team is a matter of time sooner or later, do you think that the time is just right now?
It is more appropriate, because I have experienced a period of injury before, and after recovering from playing a lot of games, personally, I also understand that there are still many deficiencies at this stage, and I hope that through more game accumulation, I can make myself more perfect and more comprehensive. So this time to get this opportunity, first of all, it is also an affirmation of yourself, it is a return for so many years of pay, and secondly, it will definitely have a higher requirement for yourself, through future training and competition, so that you can be worthy of the position of the national team.
◆ Did you watch the previous matches of the national team?
All watched, not a single one fell.
◆ There are still more people in this big list, you need to compete for a position, do you feel competitive?
The players in the national team actually know each other very well, each other is an opponent in the league, each player has their own characteristics, of course, the coach has his own choices, so for me, it is to do their best as much as possible, to fully display their own characteristics, without regrets, the problem of choice is left to the coach.