Gao Leilei, a name that has been forgotten by Chinese football fans for too long, was re-screened today. In August 2019, Gao Leilei announced his joining La Liga side Ponferradina, and on July 21 this year he finally made his league debut this season, the 40-year-old Chinese veteran came off the bench in the second half, and he played a total of 16 minutes in this game, with 7 passes and 5 in place.
Realizing his dream of La Liga again can be said to be The wish of Gao Leilei, during his time in Ponferradina, he only played once for the team in the Copa del Rey, although Pomferradina only let him play when he confirmed early relegation, but has given the 40-year-old veteran enough respect. After the game, Gao Leilei announced his retirement on Weibo, he said: "At the age of 17, I began to play in A A, and after nine seasons in China, I went to the Australian League, the Finnish Super League, the American League, then retired for five years, and then came back for five years, I spent ten years, at the age of 40, to enter the West B competition... Thank you to all the family, friends, and teachers who have helped me! Gao Leilei bowed in thanks. ”
Veterans do not die, but will slowly wither away, as the Chinese men's football team in the ancient era of living fossil players, his comrades-in-arms of the same age have long retired. It's a miracle that he can still race on the professional field at the age of 40, even if it's a substitute? Although Gao Leilei's overall career performance is mediocre, he has a wealth of experience, from the Chinese Super League to the Australian league and the Finnish league to Spain, and is one of the earliest foreign players in the Chinese men's football team.
What really made Gao Leilei enter the field of vision of public fans was his spicy comments on Chinese football. In previous live broadcasts, he bluntly said that the president of the Football Association did not understand the ball, and most of the Players in the Chinese Super League were at the level of players in the Spanish League C. Although many people feel that he is using the identity of the player to make a grandstanding. However, there are also those who support him, believing that he has traveled to the major leagues in Europe, experienced it himself, and made remarks after comparison.
Now whether Gao Leilei's words are objective or not, we will not evaluate, a thousand people have a thousand Hamlets, this truth is understood by everyone. However, there are two points in Gao Leilei that are very admirable and worth learning for future generations.
The first point is that he is keen on public welfare and has a heroic personality. When he played football in Finland and Australia that year, Gao Leilei's annual salary was only 300,000 yuan, and when the 5.12 earthquake occurred, in order to donate money to Wenchuan, he directly donated half of his annual salary of 150,000 yuan. For charity, donate half of their annual salary, how many people in real life can do it?
The second point that makes people more admirable is that Gao Leilei is not only as simple as donating money, but also practicing charity. He once taught in a poor primary school for half a year, and during the period of Mabian support, he implemented half a million yuan of materials and school-related facilities under his supervision, without losing a penny, so that it is the real meaning of charity.
Today, the football career belonging to Gao Leilei has come to an end, but he has played an absolute exemplary role for his juniors. Tenacity, the courage to fight for dreams, to turn the impossible into possible. For the sake of charity, practicing, willing to give, these are the lack of this era, he is "outlier", but he has to let people firmly give a thumbs up.