Women's football coach Shui Qingxia: World Cup goal of the top 8 The more applause, the more sober we must be

Shui Qingxia

In 2023, important events such as the Women's World Cup, the Hangzhou Asian Games and the 2024 Paris Olympic Games Women's Qualifiers will follow, with a dense schedule and challenges. In this regard, the Chinese women's football team will be fully prepared, continuously improve the individual ability of the team members and the overall strength of the team in training and games, go all out to play every game well, and strive to move forward towards the goal.

From January 20, the Chinese women's football team will usher in a short vacation after nearly 50 days of training in Haikou, Hainan. After the holidays, the team will start the new year with a number of warm-up matches in the second phase of winter training.

In 2023, there are three major events facing the Chinese women's football team: the Women's World Cup in July-August, the Hangzhou Asian Games in September, and the Paris Olympic Women's Qualifiers in October. Shui Qingxia, head coach of the Chinese women's football team, said: "This year's competition is very heavy, and our training requirements will be stricter than before. The coaching staff and players trust each other and achieve a unified goal. We will be well prepared and give our all to play every game. ”

Major events followed, working towards the goal

From July, the Chinese women's football team will enter the "big test" mode, and important competitions will follow.

In the World Cup, the Chinese women's football team is in the same group as European Cup champions England and Denmark, and the other opponent will be selected through the play-offs. If China is to qualify from the group, the first match against Denmark will be crucial. After the World Cup, the Chinese team, playing at home, will make an appearance at the Asian Games.

Not long ago, the AFC announced the format and schedule of the Asian qualifiers for the women's football competition at the Paris Olympics, and 31 AFC teams will compete for two tickets. With the ranking advantage, the Chinese women's football team will directly participate in the second phase of the match with North Korea, Japan, Australia and South Korea. In this stage, the 12 teams will be divided into 3 groups, with 3 teams first in the group and 2nd in the best group in total, and a total of 4 teams will advance to the third stage. At that time, the four teams will decide the situation through a draw and determine the two promotion places through the home-and-away format.

In October last year, the "China Women's Football Reform and Development Plan (2022-2035)" (hereinafter referred to as the "Plan") was officially announced, proposing that "the women's national team ranks at the leading level in Asia and strives to win the top 8 of the 2023 Women's World Cup and the 2024 Olympic Games". Shui Qingxia said: "The team's competition this year is very heavy, and we need to make good allocations and arrangements when preparing for the game. I hope the team can reach the quarter-finals at the World Cup; The Asian Games will be held 'on the doorstep' and the whole team will want to perform well; there will be fewer places in the Olympics, there will be more competition, and we will try to qualify." Every race in every event is tough, and we set and work towards it. ”

Shao Ziqin, a young player, said: "The biggest gain from participating in this training is to hone my will, and for a period of time the training was very intense, and finally I worked hard to persevere." I still have a gap with the main team members in terms of experience, technology, awareness, etc., and I hope to continue to improve my ability. ”

Consolidate the foundation to improve strength, and the domestic league is becoming increasingly exciting

In 2022, there are 13 players in the Chinese women's football team who play in overseas leagues, and many of them have already established themselves in the team. In this training camp, the Chinese women's football team did not recall players who played in overseas leagues on a large scale, but let them continue to maintain their form in the game.

Shui Qingxia supported the hard work in the high-level league to enhance the confidence and ability of the players and consolidate the foundation: "I hope that in the future, more players will 'go out' and be tested in the high-level league, so as to improve their personal ability and the overall strength of the Chinese women's football team." ”

At the same time, the level of the Chinese Football Association Women's Super League has also been continuously improved. The fact that 18-year-old goalkeeper Pan Hongyan was selected for this training camp is inseparable from her outstanding performance in the Women's Super League. Shui Qingxia said: "Nowadays, more and more teams pay attention to the speed of offensive and defensive conversion in high competition, and the Women's Super League will become more and more exciting. ”

For the future development of women's football, the "Plan" proposes that by 2030, Chinese women's football should strive to return to the ranks of world-class teams; By 2035, China's women's football team will achieve all-round development, women's participation in the population and socialization will be greatly increased, and football will become a sport in which women participate in the world.

"I hope that through the efforts of the Chinese women's football team, more girls will fall in love with football and take to the court." Shui Qingxia said.

Women's football is developing rapidly and has firm confidence in the face of challenges

In February 2022, the Chinese women's football team won the Asian Cup, which attracted widespread attention. Today, the world women's football movement is ushering in a period of rapid development, and the pace of China's women's football is also accelerating. "In terms of strength, we are improving step by step, but we must have a more accurate understanding and positioning of ourselves, and continue to work hard to strive for greater progress." Shui Qingxia said.

In the second stage of winter training, the Chinese women's football team will travel to Spain for four warm-up matches. Lou Jiahui, a member of the team, said: "Now the rhythm and atmosphere of the team's preparation are very good, and the old players will share their experience with the younger players. Whether it is the World Cup, the Asian Games or the Olympic qualifiers, it is a stage to show themselves, and I hope that everyone will show their training results and personal characteristics in the competition. ”

From the green field to the current head coach, Shui Qingxia sees the inheritance from this group of young players, "The young players are very energetic and hardworking, showing a sense of honor for the country. During the training camp in Haikou, team member Chen Qiaozhu was very committed to training, she said: "I was selected for the national team in 2018, but every time I have the Olympics, World Cup and other major competitions, I am always plagued by injuries, which makes me feel particularly regretful, so I especially cherish this opportunity." ”

"The next game will be tougher, but the more difficult it is, the more we have to be confident. No matter what the result is, we must face it correctly, and the more applause, the more sober we must be. Shui Qingxia said.

People's Daily (Version 14, January 19, 2023)