On January 9th, Beijing time, when Wang Dalei, who made continuous mistakes and set a record for conceding goals in both the Chinese Super League (CSL) and the national team, surprisingly won the title of Best Goalkeeper for the 25th season as announced by the Football Association, many fans found it hard to understand. This 36-year-old veteran goalkeeper, who conceded a 0-7 defeat with the national team and a 0-6 defeat with his club, managed to win the title of Best Goalkeeper in the CSL. After Wang Dalei's victory was confirmed, some fans who did not agree with him winning the award listed three data points that they believed made him unfit for the title.
The first data point against Wang Dalei being the best goalkeeper is that Shandong Taishan only finished fifth in the league. The second is that he conceded 40 goals in the league, ranking sixth among all CSL goalkeepers. The third is that he only played 23 out of 30 matches in the league. Compared to Yan Junling, the full-time goalkeeper for Shanghai Port, who has more appearances, fewer conceded goals, and helped his team achieve a higher league position, Wang Dalei falls short in all these aspects. At this point, it seems that Yan Junling should have been the one to receive the title of Best Goalkeeper in the CSL.
After Yan Junling's outstanding performance in the CSL failed to earn him the title of Best Goalkeeper, the national goalkeeper, who some believe is not deserving of the title, posted a farewell message to his teammate Balazs at 23:00 late at night. It seems that the timing of this post was quite appropriate, as it brought him back into the spotlight of CSL fans, reminding them that there is still an excellent goalkeeper like Yan Junling. His post, filled with deep meaning, may be a subtle reminder to CSL fans that Yan Junling is still qualified to compete for the title of Best Goalkeeper in the CSL.
