Reporter Wang Wei reported that on the afternoon of May 25, the 2021 season of the Chinese Second League Yancheng Division, Hebei Zhuo'ao against Shaanxi Warriors Surpass. Former international Xiao Zhi, who represented Hebei Zhuo'ao, played together with Wang Xiaolong, and the two had a wonderful cooperation in the second half, Xiao Zhi made a wonderful pass, Wang Xiaolong's shot hit the goalpost and popped up, hebei Zhuo'ao missed the opportunity to win the first victory of the season. Before this year's league transfer window closed, Xiao Zhi joined the new Hebei Zhuo'ao team and started his football career in the Chinese Second Division. Why choose to play in the Second Division? Xiao Zhi said he had his own ideas.
Last season, Xiao Zhi joined Tianjin TEDA on a free reinsert from Guangzhou R&F, where he signed a one-season contract with TEDA Club, and after the end of the 2020 season, Xiao Zhi's contract with TEDA expired.
Due to the reduction in investment of Chinese Super League and Chinese League A teams this year, there are a number of Chinese Super League, Chinese First Division, And Chinese Second Division teams disbanded, under the strict control of the investment cap and salary cap, this year's domestic player transfer market has shown a trend of more than the ball, which also makes it difficult for players to find a satisfactory home. During the winter training process, Xiao Zhi had communicated with many teams, including shandong Taishan team in the Chinese Super League, and later once talked face-to-face with a team with a goal of rushing to sign a contract, but in the end he chose Hebei Zhuo'ao.
Although in most of the winter training, Xiao Zhi basically trained alone to maintain his state, but Xiao Zhi, who has been looking forward to continuing to play in the professional arena, attaches great importance to his winter training reserves, in order to ensure that there is a physical reserve for the game, he specially went to the R&F football training base for single training, and at the same time invited a physical trainer to help him complete the physical reserve during the winter training reserve period.
Under the guidance of the physical trainer, Xiao Zhi systematically completed the indicators required by the winter training and maintained an efficient physical reserve. In addition to maintaining physical fitness and technical tactics, Xiao Zhi is also in accordance with the standards of professional clubs in terms of daily diet and rest, and from the sebum test and strength test data, the entire winter training has maintained a good standard, and the body shape has also been maintained very well.
"As a professional player, the body is your own capital, although you need to train yourself for a long time during winter training, but at this time you must be more strict with yourself, and when you have the opportunity to join a new team, you can immediately enter the state of the game, not to let the physical strength drag your legs." Xiao Zhi said, "Although the environment of this year's league is not very good, players like my age should be more strict with themselves, strictly self-disciplined, and maintain their own state." ”
In fact, throughout the winter training, Xiao Zhi still hopes to have the opportunity to join a Chinese Super League team, although in the end he failed to get his wish, and finally joined a Chinese B club, but he can also continue the professional football dream he has been looking forward to.
Xiao Zhi's Hebei Zhuo'ao team is a team re-established this season, after the formation of the team, the introduction of former international Wang Xiaolong, as well as Zhang Chenlong, who played in Guangzhou R&F, and several players were loaned from yatai, many of whom have played in the Chinese Super League and the Chinese First Division. From the perspective of the introduction of players, this Hebei Zhuo'ao team is very thoughtful about hedging into the Chinese League A, which is also one of the factors that attract Xiao Zhi to join.
With Xiao Zhi's current state and strength, there was originally an opportunity to continue to play in the Chinese Super League, but due to the change of the format this season, the relegation pressure of the Chinese Super League and the Chinese First Division this year has suddenly lightened, and a large number of young players have been used in the middle and lower reaches of the team, and many clubs have taken this opportunity to train young players, and foreign aid has brought a group of young players to play, which is very difficult for old players like Xiao Zhi to continue to play in the Chinese Super League. "In this market, the veteran players who have ended their contracts do not have much advantage, but the lower league teams need these experienced veteran players to bring in young players." Xiao Zhi said.
"Xiaolong also hopes that I will join the Hebei Zhuo'ao team, and this year everyone will rush to the Chinese First Division together." After Hebei Zhuo'ao extended an olive branch, Wang Xiaolong also issued an invitation to his old teammates, so Xiao Zhi became teammates with Wang Xiaolong and Zhang Chenlong.
So far, Hebei Zhuo'ao has played three games in the Chinese Second Division, achieving 2 draws and 1 loss, "In the past three rounds of matches, we have pressed the opponent to play every game, and the opponent also knows that our team has a certain strength, and each team and we are fighting for defense, shrinking the backcourt, which has caused a certain difficulty for our team's goal, which is the subject we are focusing on now." Xiao Zhi said.
Qingdao Manatees, who have a high voice in the new season of the Chinese Second Division, are also in the Yancheng Division, Xiao Zhi and Qingdao Manatee's former international Jiang Ning often meet in the division, and the two of them will also have the same sigh, "Jiang Ning also said that all the teams touch us when they basically close the kick, playing a defensive counterattack, we always have to pay attention to the sudden sneak attack by the opponent after we go up, the most difficult league to play in China is the Chinese Second Division, if the opponent once holds the idea of sticking to the dead, this game is not easy to play, it is not easy to break the iron barrel array, The striker was surrounded by several opposing defenders in the front. Xiao Zhi said, "Our team has also encountered such a situation, we need a win now, I think it will open up the situation." ”
In the first three rounds, manatees were 1 win, 1 draw and 1 loss, and Hebei Zhuo'ao team was 2 draws and 1 loss, which could not reflect the real strength of this team from the record, but there were also objective factors, because the Zhuo'ao team from the team to the game, so far the team has only been training together for more than a month, and Xiao Zhi and the team have only practiced together for more than 20 days. "The team has just been formed, the first stage needs to be played while running, there is a time process can also gradually run into the state, after all, the league did not have much time to run in before the start, our goal now is to first enter the championship group after the end of the first stage of the game, and the team's goal this year is to hope for success in the league." Xiao Zhi said, "To rush to the middle division, we must first solve the problem of breaking the dense defense, and now I myself am gradually familiar with the middle two and adapt to the game of the middle division as soon as possible." ”
For the team's goals and prospects, Xiao Zhi also often communicates with Wang Xiaolong, and now both of them are the captains of the team, and they have a common dream, that is, to fully assist this Hebei team to succeed in the first division.
Before the match against the Shaanxi Warriors Beyond Team, Xiao Zhi asked his teammates to give him a new haircut, and the short hair made him look more refreshing and energetic. "During the long closed period, we all learned one more skill." Xiao Zhi joked, "Now our teammates can cut each other's hair, and they all cut well, you can buy a fader yourself." ”
From the main force of the Chinese Super League team to the national team, Xiao Zhi's professional football resume is colorful and the best among the contemporaries, but the 36-year-old still chooses to continue to stick to it, although he is now playing in the Chinese Second Division, because in his eyes, he can still play, and he still loves football. Xiao Zhi said: "I have thought about playing football in the second division, in fact, no matter which platform I play on, I must do my best to play well. Now to the Middle B team, we must help the team to sprint to the next level of the league, play a leading role as a veteran player in the team, and unite with everyone to strive for success. ”
Xiao Zhi said that this is also a complaint, although the old players are a wealth of the team, but also can inherit the spirit of the team, but in the format that is not easy to relegate, the team exercises more young people, and there is nothing wrong with it. "I came to Guangzhou R&F from Henan Jianye in my early 30s, and I was also faced with a choice that I had to start all over again, and at that time I firmly believed that I could, and finally through my own efforts and the help of my coaches and teammates, I got the opportunity, not only in the Chinese Super League for a second spring, but also in the national team of the Lippi period." Xiao Zhi said, "Now that I come to the second division, I think it is also an opportunity, although there may be some difficulties, but I will still persevere, I believe I can help the team." ”
Xiao Zhi emphasized: "My persistence is not a dead-skinned insistence, my persistence is not to say that I feel that I can't do it, I rely on shouting persistence to bluff, my persistence is firmly believed in the ability to kick down the insistence, not for the sake of persistence, persistence is because I still love." ”
The four years in Guangzhou R&F gave Xiao Zhi some life inspiration, "I took a look, our 85 years of this group of players are very tenacious, such as Lu Lin, this time in the Middle League Meizhou Hakka team has performed well. In fact, our team members have the ability, the key is now subject to changes in the league environment, but whether it is the middle A or the second division, we can find our own positioning and play the role we should play. Xiao Zhi said.
As a local center forward, Xiao Zhi has been competing with foreign strikers since he participated in the professional league, and now the young striker who has just debuted is still competing with foreign forwards, and it seems to be more difficult. "I have seen through all these years, in the past so many years I have been competing with foreign forwards for positions, at that time I felt that it was difficult to grab the position, now it seems that it is more difficult for young forwards, the Chinese Super League, the Chinese First Division teams have used so many foreign aides, it is too difficult for local forwards to get the opportunity to exercise." Xiao Zhi said.
The Chinese Second Division, due to the fact that the introduction of foreign aid is not allowed, the domestic forwards have got a lot of training opportunities here, which may also be the direct reason why the Chinese Football Association has put the national youth team in the Middle B for training, "Now the national team uses a number of naturalized players, these naturalized midfield players are very capable, but from another point of view, the local players in the midfield will be difficult, and more importantly, how to cultivate and train China's own strikers in the future? From the perspective of factors on the pitch alone, if only two foreign players are allowed to play in each team in the future professional league, then the level of domestic players can be trained and the level can be truly improved. ”
Xiao Zhi believes that Chinese football cannot use naturalized players forever, this is just a product of a transitional period, and it is still necessary to use to train its own players in the future. "Through the close observation of the Chinese Second League during this time, I found that the Teams in the Chinese Second Division play around their own local stars, not around foreign aid like in the Chinese Super League. There are 11 players on the field in one team, but there are 4 foreign players, and it is difficult for domestic players to be trained in key positions. "Of course, this is only one aspect, football is a very complex issue. ”
Xiao Zhi and Wang Jiannan, who played in the Japanese league, are fellow villagers in Luoyang and have also played together in Guangzhou R&F, and the two have exchanged views on the foreign aid policies of the Japanese league. "There is a consensus among the teams in the Japanese league that their positioning of foreign aid is to help the team, not to play around foreign aid, which is to improve performance on the one hand, and let foreign aid drive local players to improve their level."
Xiao Zhi also pointed out: "If the Chinese Super League teams also have such an understanding, each team only has two foreign aides, then the opportunities for domestic players to play will increase." Although this will affect the viewing to a certain extent, the long pain is not as good as the short pain, and it can improve the overall strength of chinese players in order to fall on the ground. Of course, this also requires overcoming commercial difficulties, but to really improve the level of Chinese local players, this step should be taken. ”