In Shanghai in April, the warm spring light is sprinkled on the youthful and energetic football field. The 47-year-old Qi Hong stood on the sidelines, his eyes shining, staring closely at the young players' every move, recording the changes on the tactical board from time to time.
The once high-profile international superstar is now back on the pitch to coach, a scene that has sparked memories for countless fans.
Everyone seems to see Qi Hong, who scored three valuable goals in the 2002 South Korea-Japan World Cup qualifiers, and he was one of the heroes of China's first World Cup finals.
He was the pride of the fans back then. And now, Qi Hong's temples have been slightly dyed with traces of time, but those eyes are still shining and full of enthusiasm.
Looking at the young players running on the field, Qi Hong seemed to have returned to his youth. The teenager known as the "Shenhua Rising Star" has won numerous prizes in various student competitions, and was soon accepted by the Shanghai Shenhua Youth Team.
Now Qi Hong is entering the sixth decade of his life with a new look, although he is only coaching a youth team, but this is a precious opportunity for him to prove himself again and regain his former glory.
Qi Hong has a brilliant football career
In 2002, Qi Hong was only 24 years old and wore the national team jersey to fight for the motherland. In the memorable South Korea-Japan World Cup qualifiers, he scored three valuable goals and became one of the heroes of the Chinese team breaking through the finals for the first time.
At that time, Qi Hong was in his prime and had a bright future.
A year earlier, in 2001, Qi Hong was elected the most popular player in the Chinese Super League with his outstanding charisma and outstanding skills. This young man from Shanghai has surpassed sports legends such as Ma Mingyu and Fan Zhiyi with a new star.
It was 1998, and the 22-year-old Qi Hong was favored by the then national football coach Mi Lu and was selected for the national team for the first time.
No one expected that this Shanghai guy wearing the national flag robe would write countless legends on the green field and become the pride of the new generation of Chinese football.
Back in 1995, 19-year-old Qi Hong helped his parent team Shanghai Shenhua win the league championship that year. As the star of Shenhua, he shoulders the hope for the future of the whole team.
Qi Hong was born in Shanghai in 1976, and since the age of 10, he has won the "Lei Feng Cup" and "Miao Miao Cup" double championships in various student competitions, showing outstanding football talent, and was soon included in the Shenhua Youth Team.
Qi Hong's gambling incident
In the final battle of the 2003 A-League, the leader Shanghai Shenhua played against the relegation queen Tianjin TEDA. It stands to reason that the Shenhua team, who had a huge disparity in quality, could have won easily, but surprisingly, they lost 1-2 in that game.
After the game, a large number of angry fans gathered in front of the hotel where the Shenhua players stayed, chanting slogans of "match-fixing" and "ticket refund", and the scene was out of control for a while.
At that time, although no one could have imagined that this seemingly ordinary game turned out to be a well-planned "match-fixing".
It wasn't until seven years later, in 2010, that the scandal was fully unearthed. It turned out that in order to ensure the success of the TEDA team's relegation, coach Zhang Yifeng secretly co-opted many main players of the Shenhua team, including Qi Hong, and used money to lure them to drag on the field and deliberately lose.
The players involved did their best to cooperate as they wished, which eventually led to the Shenhua team suffering Waterloo.
Subsequently, many officials of the Chinese Football Association began to shrink back after the case was solved, and they confessed the names of Qi Hong and others. This scandal is undoubtedly the darkest moment of Qi Hong's career, and it also cast a permanent stain on the Shenhua team that year.
Shocking was once everywhere in October 2010, Qi Hong, who was then coaching the national girls' football team, suddenly disappeared and was secretly taken away by the police for investigation.
His players were shocked and defended the outside world, but the facts were finally revealed.
After a long interrogation, Qi Hong had to bow his head and confess his guilt, confessing that he had indeed accepted bribes in that match between Shenhua and TEDA 7 years ago, and deliberately lost and overdrafted in exchange for monetary benefits.
In this way, the international superstar of the year was thrown into prison at the peak of his career, and his future was ruined.
In June 2012, after a lengthy trial, the Shenyang Intermediate People's Court finally sentenced Qi Hong to five and a half years in prison for "accepting bribes from non-state functionaries."
At the courtroom scene, Qi Hong's wife's eyes were dilated, and she cried to death. The once-glorious family is now gone, replaced by endless shame and guilt.
In prison, Qi Hong often reflected on his mistakes, vowing that once he regained his freedom, he would change his mind and start a new life.
A fresh start after being released from prison
September 2, 2016, this is the day when Qi Hong regained his life. At that time, on the banks of the Huangpu River, a ray of morning light passed through the clouds, bringing an atmosphere of hope to the city.
The prison door slowly opened in front of Qi Hong, and he opened his eyes wide and took a deep breath of free air. His wife, relatives and friends waited outside the door for a long time, and when they saw Qi Hong's figure, tears came out of their eyes.
Qi Hong vowed never to repeat the mistakes of the past and was determined to start a new journey in life.
After being released from prison, Qi Hong began to live a low-key and simple life, away from the outside world's sight and spotlight. It wasn't until February 2023 that the 47-year-old made his public debut again as the coach of the youth team.
Although his current income is only 100,000 yuan, far below the average of a first-tier city like Shanghai, for Qi Hong, the job means an opportunity for self-redemption and re-certification.
Today's Qi Hong is no longer as sharp as he used to be, but he has experienced many vicissitudes of life, and he has a calm and mature charm.
The former football superstar is now entering his sixth decade with a new look and hopes to rediscover his talent and regain his former glory in the youth industry.
Despite all the vicissitudes of life, his love for football has never been extinguished, and he still has infinite hopes for returning to coaching.
The pain of anti-corruption in Chinese football
In 2022, the anti-corruption storm in Chinese football has once again attracted attention. Li Tie, a former international player who previously coached the national football coach, was found to have misbehaved in office, not only asking players to endorse sea cucumber products for personal gain, but also focusing on his own hairstyle on the field instead of focusing on the game.
In the end, Li Tie was arrested and investigated by the relevant departments on suspicion of serious violations.
The Taurus player, born in 1977, once crossed the ocean to join the Premier League team Everton, and was later selected for the famous "Jianlibao" visiting team to go to Brazil for exchange.
He is also a core member of the South Korea and Japan World Cup national teams. Now that he has fallen to the point of being imprisoned at the bottom of the stairs, it makes people sigh.
These anti-corruption cases have undoubtedly dealt a heavy blow to Chinese football. We are eager to see more young people with ideals and ethics join the ranks of football.
Real heroes and idols should be created on the green field, not blinded by money and interests. Let us all hope that Chinese football can reshape its style and rebuild its righteousness in the future, and bring glory to the national sport again.