Shandong Luneng Taishan Football School was established in 1999 and has cultivated outstanding backbone talents for the club over the past two decades. It has also delivered elite players to various national teams, becoming a banner of professional football training in China since its inception.
For Shandong Taishan fans, having an excellent football school that can self-sustain is undoubtedly a source of happiness and pride. Whenever new promising stars emerge from the football school, fans are always filled with joy, eagerly anticipating their success and hoping for their growth.
However, the realization of hope often comes with its disappointment. Many young talents shine brightly at the beginning of their careers, carrying the high hopes of fans who wish for them to become mainstays of the team and pillars of the national team. But as time goes by, some players fall into the predicament of "injury to Zhong Yong," leaving only disappointment in the hearts of fans. Taking the past decade as an example:
The eighth "injury to Zhong Yong" among the hopeful stars is Tang Shi. Born in 1995, Tang Shi had excellent skills and a strong reputation during his time at Shandong Luneng Football School. He was the same age and class as Wei Shihao, and together they left the school under the operation of an agent. They later joined Meizhou Hakka, went abroad, and returned to China several times before transferring to Beijing Guoan in 2017.
At that time, the Chinese Football Association introduced the U23 policy, and under such favorable conditions, Tang Shi only made 15 appearances for Guoan without scoring any goals and only providing one assist.
In 2018, he transferred to Guangzhou Evergrande, where he played a total of 11 times in two and a half seasons, scoring one goal and providing one assist. However, his overall performance was average, and he later moved to Beijing BSU, currently playing for Heilongjiang Ice City.
Tang Shi's strengths are good technique and awareness, but his biggest disadvantage is poor physical confrontation. In competitive sports, without physical confrontation, there is no room for technical display, and he is prone to injuries. Despite his efforts, he ultimately failed to shine brightly, which is very regrettable.
The seventh "injury to Zhong Yong" is Xu Xu. Born in 1998, Xu Xu was selected into Shandong Luneng Football School at the age of 7 and had excellent skills, earning him the nickname "Little Messi" and widespread attention from fans.
However, ten years later, at the critical juncture of entering professional football, Xu Xu chose the same path as Tang Shi and went abroad to play. Unfortunately, feeling his way across the river, Xu Xu did not achieve success abroad and eventually joined Shaanxi Chang'an Athletic in 2022, making a total of 31 appearances with no goals or assists. He has now retired.
Similar to Tang Shi and Xu Xu, players in a hurry to go abroad for further training are not uncommon in Chinese football, but successful cases are few and far between. This experience serves as a valuable lesson for other players, but it is a harsh reality for the players themselves.
The sixth "injury to Zhong Yong" is Cui Wei. Born in 1994, Cui Wei joined the first team after graduating from Luneng Football School. According to reports by football reporter Chen Yong, Cui Wei showed excellent skills in team training and often performed impressive dribbling feats.
After the introduction of the Chinese Football Association's U23 policy in 2017, when some teams were worried about the lack of available players, Shandong Taishan fans were relaxed because the team was never short of young talents; they just didn't know which player the head coach would choose first.
As the league began, the mystery was revealed, and head coach Magath trusted Cui Wei the most among the U23 players.
At the beginning of the season, Cui Wei continuously received starting opportunities, and as fans hoped he would become the star of the season, his performance gradually deteriorated, and he faded out of the main lineup, disappearing from the Taishan squad.
In 2018, Cui Wei was loaned to Meizhou Hakka in the China League One, making 26 appearances and scoring 2 goals. In 2019, he officially completed the transfer, playing 97 times for Meizhou Hakka in 5 years, scoring 10 goals and providing 9 assists. In 2024, he was loaned to Ganzhou Rishi and Guangdong Guangzhou Leopard.
Cui Wei once played regularly for Meizhou Hakka, but compared to the expectations of fans back then, he still fell short.
The fifth "injury to Zhong Yong" is Cheng Yuan. Born in 1993, Cheng Yuan is a native of Shandong and was selected into Shandong Taishan's reserve team in the 2013 season, officially joining the first team in 2015.
Cheng Yuan became famous for consistently being the top scorer in the reserve team, and Shandong Taishan has always had the tradition that the top scorers in the reserve team could make it big. However, this tradition changed when it came to Cheng Yuan.
Many coaches in the first team have given Cheng Yuan opportunities, especially during Li Xiaopeng's tenure, who gave Cheng Yuan a lot of playing time in important matches against teams like Guangzhou Evergrande, hoping he could bring changes to the team. But Cheng Yuan missed these opportunities.
During his time with Shandong Taishan, Cheng Yuan mostly played in the FA Cup against weaker opponents, first being loaned to Zibo Cuju and then to Taizhou Yuanda, ultimately retiring in Jinan Xingzhou. He failed to prove himself in the Chinese Super League.
The fourth "injury to Zhong Yong" is Chen Kelei. Born in 1996, Chen Kelei started his career at Luneng Football School and briefly went abroad before being loaned to Baoding Rongda and Meizhou Hakka after returning to China. He gained fame domestically after foreign scouts evaluated him as capable of reaching the level of Europe's top five leagues, earning the hopes of many Taishan fans.
However, since returning on loan in 2018, Chen Kelei did not show superior skills. As a midfielder, he had average physical confrontation, slow speed, mediocre technique, and weak sweeping ability. In three years, he made a total of 18 appearances for Shandong Taishan, scoring one goal, which was in the FA Cup.
In the 2021 season, he was loaned to Tianjin Jinmen Tiger, where the team was almost disbanded that season and had few available players. Under such circumstances, Chen Kelei only made 17 appearances with no goals or assists.
In the 2023 season, he transferred to Chongqing Tongliang Long in the China League One, playing 18 games with no goals or assists, and last year he transferred to Rizhao Yuxi in the China League Two, playing 16 games with no goals or assists.
Although Chen Kelei has great talent, he has been a victim of injuries, failing to reach his potential, which is infinitely regrettable.
The third "injury to Zhong Yong" is Liu Chaoyang. Born in 1999, Liu Chaoyang is the son of Sichuan football veteran Liu Bin. He showed remarkable talent in his childhood and stood out in various youth leagues. He entered Luneng Football School in 2014 and was selected for the U19 to U22 national teams due to his excellent performance.
In 2019, Liu Chaoyang made 8 appearances for Shandong Taishan, with no goals or assists. He was subsequently loaned to teams like Shijiazhuang Yongchang, Chengdu Rongcheng, and Shaanxi Chang'an Athletic, where he made 28 appearances, scoring 7 goals and providing 1 assist. The following year, he joined Qingdao Hainiu as a free agent, making 7 appearances with no goals or assists.
In 2024, he was loaned to Guangdong Guangzhou Leopard, scoring one goal in 11 games, and this season he joined Chiang Mai FC in the Thai League Two.
Liu Chaoyang's problem is also physical, as his playing style is not tough enough, making it difficult for him to stand firm in the Chinese Super League, which emphasizes physical confrontation. Of course, Liu Chaoyang is 26 years old this year, and there may still be opportunities. We hope he can achieve late success.
The second "injury to Zhong Yong" is Zhang Yuanshu. Born in 1997, Zhang Yuanshu is from Luoyang, Henan, and joined Luneng Football School in 2014. He went to Brazil in 2016 to join the U20 team of Sport Club Internacional and was later loaned to the U20 team of São Paulo. Among the batch of Brazilian trainees at that time, Zhang Yuanshu was one of the few players who could play in the Brazilian league, frequently reported by domestic media, making fans eager for him to return and contribute to the team.
In 2021, Zhang Yuanshu returned to Shandong Taishan but made no appearances in the Chinese Super League. He was then loaned to Zibo Cuju and still couldn't get opportunities upon his return,