Recently, in order to test the results of their winter training, Beijing Guoan arranged an internal teaching match. They played against Shandong Luneng's youth team, with a notable condition that Guoan would play with one less player to ensure the quality of the friendly match. In other words, Guoan played the entire game with ten men against eleven, yet they still managed to showcase a multi-flourishing offensive trend and ultimately triumphed with a 4-0 victory.
The result of Guoan's 4-0 victory over Luneng's youth team did not come as a surprise to fans. After all, Guoan's overall strength is more than just a level above Luneng's youth team. What delighted Guoan fans the most was the breakout performance of Yan Yu, who scored twice in the match, demonstrating his remarkable form. Yan Yu is a standout from Guoan's post-02 youth training program, alongside Liang Shaowen and Ruan Qilong.
However, when Yan Yu first joined Guoan's youth ranks, his overall performance was quite average. As a result, he did not get the chance to participate in the AFC Champions League with Guoan's youth team. Fortunately, Yan Yu did not give up on his professional career. Instead, he continued to strive to prove himself in training. Later, when representing Guoan's youth team in the U21 league, he had a significant breakthrough. Yan Yu performed exceptionally well in the matches, earning him the title of top scorer in the event.
This led to Yan Yu being promoted to Guoan's first team and gaining the opportunity to play in the Chinese Super League. However, Guoan is not short of domestic forwards, with players like Lin Liangming, Wang Ziming, and Fang Hao, among others, supporting the team. Yan Yu chose to stay with Guoan, which meant he could only sit on the bench, so last season he was loaned out to Heilongjiang Ice City in the China League One and secured a starting position.
Yan Yu's return to participate in Guoan's winter training this time also presents him with the best opportunity to demonstrate his abilities in front of new coach Setien. If Yan Yu can continue to explode with goals in Guoan's winter training friendlies, it is highly likely that he will be retained by Setien for Guoan's first team. This would allow him to gain stable playing time in the new season's Chinese Super League and FA Cup, potentially ushering in another peak in his career.