When the World Cup in Russia came to an end, the Chinese Super League finally rekindled the flames of war.
In the first round of the Chinese Super League after the off-season, a name that had been far away from the field for a long time announced its return, and he was Zhang Xiuwei, a 22-year-old young player of Tianjin Quanjian.
Previously, he was punished for drinking and driving, using false age to compete, and was also fiercely criticized by the outside world. But fortunately, the young man did not sink there.
He has worked hard to change his image by training hard and participating in public welfare activities, and in the mouth of Quan Jian coach Sousa, he still has the potential to become the "next leader" of the team.
Tianjin, China, July 17, 2018, 2018 Chinese Super League Round 12, Tianjin Quanjian 2-1 Guangzhou R&F. Zhang Xiuwei warmed up on the sidelines. Images of this article Visual China
The scandal broke out and hit rock bottom
Before August last year, Zhang Xiuwei was originally a talented rising star expected by many domestic fans.
He played well in Tianjin Quanjian and was also one of the main players in the u23 national team, but a drunk driving scandal hit him to the bottom in an instant.
In the early morning of August 15 last year, Zhang Xiuwei collided with six motor vehicles parked on the side of the road in Tianjin's Heping District due to drunken driving, causing damage to 7 motor vehicles, but fortunately did not cause casualties.
Subsequently, he was criminally detained by the police on suspicion of dangerous driving. Three months later, the Tianjin Heping District Court sentenced Zhang Xiuwei to three months' detention, suspended for three months, and fined him 8,000 yuan for dangerous driving.
Because of this incident, the Heping District Community Corrections Management Detachment also established a 4-member corrections team for him to supervise, manage, and educate and help him. At the same time, he was also equipped with an electronic positioning bracelet to monitor his movement trajectory.
But his troubles didn't end there.
In the verdict in the drunk driving case, it was confirmed that Zhang Xiuwei had used the name "Zhang Jixuan" and was born on March 13, 1996. In some of the previous online youth competition materials, "Zhang Jixuan" was born on March 13, 1994. So some netizens inferred that Zhang Xiuwei was suspected of age fraud
The Chinese Football Association intervened in the investigation. In January this year, the Chinese Football Association issued a notice on its official website saying that it was determined that Zhang Xiuwei had used a false age in 1994 to apply for a participation card.
According to the relevant regulations, Zhang Xiuwei was banned from participating in official matches organized by the Chinese Football Association for 9 months, from September 19, 2017 to June 18, 2018.
Zhang Xiuwei is ready to come off the bench.
"It's a bad example for everyone."
Previously, due to the drunk driving incident, Zhang Xiuwei had been ordered by the Quanjian Club to seriously reflect and apologize to the public, while suspending his salary for six months.
Later, coupled with the 9-month ban by the Football Association, a rising star seems to be about to sink.
Fortunately, Zhang Xiuwei's attitude of correcting his mistakes is still quite positive.
More than 4 months after the "drunk driving incident", Zhang Xiuwei plucked up the courage to return to the public eye. At the end of the year, he went to two primary schools in Tianjin to send sports equipment to the children, play and play football with them.
He also expressed his remorse in an interview with Xinhua, "It was really a nightmare. ”
Zhang Xiuwei said that he deserved to be punished. For a long time he did not dare to go out, feeling very humiliated, ashamed of his family and fans.
But after thinking about it, he decided to face his mistakes head-on, "Since you can't forget and escape, then face it bravely and actively bear it." ”
"Because it was too smooth, all I got was honor and applause, my mentality was biased, and I relaxed my requirements and management of myself."
"As a public figure and a social person, doing such a thing is not responsible for yourself, but also harmful to society, and it is a bad example for everyone."
During the club's winter training, due to the restriction on leaving the country, Zhang Xiuwei could not go overseas with the team to train, and could only train alone in China.
During that time, he did not idle, not only made a detailed training plan for himself to maintain his physical state, but also increased the time to read and study.
Zhang Xiuwei (center) scrambles with the ball.
"He will be the next leader"
Since the drunk driving incident, Zhang Xiuwei has not participated in any more competitions until the just-concluded 12th round of the Chinese Super League.
The last time he was in the middle of the game was on August 10, 2018, and now that he is back on the field after nearly a year, Zhang Xiuwei may have quite complicated feelings.
In this home match against Fuli, Zhang Xiuwei first appeared on the bench, and in the 57th minute of the second half, Su Yuanjie injured his shoulder and could not hold on to the game, and Zhang Xiuwei was sent by coach Sousa.
Before playing, he touched the turf and made a prayer gesture before debuting. For him, this game is of great significance, and his performance has finally reassured the fans who like him.
Although he did not send goals or assists, Zhang Xiuwei performed satisfactorily in about 40 minutes of playing time, with a pass success rate of 83% and also creating a certain threat.
Defensively, he has scored on three stats: stealing, intercepting and blocking key passes. Considering that he has not played for a long time before, this state is enough to make the outside world confident about his return.
After the game, many Tianjin fans at the scene shouted Zhang Xiuwei's name, and Zhang Xiuwei was once moved to tears. For the 22-year-old, as long as he can change his past, there is still hope for the future.
Quan Jian coach Sousa also expressed his trust in the young man.
"Zhang Xiuwei is a player full of positive energy. He did a good job in training in Austria (club summer training) and made a lot of progress. ”
'He's going to be the next leader of the team and he has the potential and the character.