The two World Cup qualifiers in 2025 are crucial matches against strong opponents Saudi Arabia and Australia, which can be described as life-and-death battles. If the Chinese national football team fails to win these two games, they may have to give up their chance to qualify. However, if everything goes smoothly, there might be a new face in the lineup of the national team in 2025, who is urgently needed and provides targeted reinforcement. On December 5, 2024, photos shared on social media showed that the player had arrived in China. He had previously submitted materials to apply for a change of nationality. Whether he can replace the national team in the game will depend on whether he meets the tactical needs of the national team coaching staff. Many people are wondering if the Chinese team could perform better with him. In 2025, Chen Xuyuan is serving a life sentence, and Li Tie has been sentenced to 20 years in prison. Fans know that the losses caused by these two individuals to Chinese football are immeasurable in monetary terms, and the impact on the morale and confidence of Chinese football is unknown how many people will have to pay for it in time and effort. 2025 marks the 31st year of professionalization in Chinese football, entering its fourth decade. The anti-corruption bell has sounded, and Chinese football, after "scraping the bones to treat the wound," is still betting big on the World Cup. From the current situation, the Football Association believes that the Chinese team is still very capable of…

At the beginning of 2025, Beijing Guoan has been receiving good news continuously. Spanish coach Quique Setien has officially joined, and new signing Serginho has also arrived in Beijing. After completing his club medical examination, he will fly to Haikou with Setien's coaching team to participate in the second phase of Guoan's winter training. After securing Serginho, the current focus of Guoan Club's work is on the introduction of domestic players. It is reported that the main positions for recruitment this season are at the full-back and central midfield positions. The main full-backs of Guoan, Li Lei and Wang Gang, have both entered the final stages of their careers and urgently need young players to step up. Last season, Feng Boxuan and He Yupeng both played as full-backs, but their overall performance was average. Coach Suarez even used Yang Liyu and Fang Hao as makeshift full-backs, indicating that there is currently no full-back player in the Guoan team who can truly replace Li Lei and Wang Gang. Therefore, during this winter transfer window, Guoan will continue to introduce full-back players. In central midfield, naturalized player Li Ke has left the team, and his new destination is likely to be Chengdu Rongcheng, a rising star in the Chinese Super League (CSL). Rongcheng Club has recently made significant moves in recruitment, with confirmed signings including Liu Dianzuo, Han Pengfei, Liao Lisheng, and Yuan Mincheng among others. With the addition of Liao Lisheng and Li Ke, Chengdu Rongcheng's central midfield position is now overcrowded. Yan Dinghao, who only joined the team last season,…

On January 6th, Beijing time, Shandong media reported that Mustapha Tash, the main central defender of Shandong Taishan B team, is on trial with Shaanxi United, a newly-promoted team to the Chinese League One. Shaanxi United, which has just been confirmed by the Football Association to be promoted to the League One, has set its sights on strengthening its defense with the 21-year-old towering central defender Mustapha, who shone in the China League Two last season. As a favorite player of Han Peng, the head coach of Shandong Taishan B team, Mustapha became the most trusted defensive pillar for Han Peng after returning from Chongqing Tongliang Long in the Chinese League One during the summer transfer window and joining Shandong Taishan B team to play in the League Two. His contributions were significant in helping the team reach the promotion group. Born in 2003, Mustapha stands at an impressive height of 1.86 meters. He is one of the key central defenders being groomed by Shandong Taishan and, along with Yan Hengyue, is considered a future successor for the team's domestic central defensive line. Having previously played for the first team in the 2001 and 2003 seasons, it is expected that Mustapha will join Shaanxi United on loan if all goes well with his trial. With Mustapha likely heading to the League One, Shandong media suggests that the new season of Shandong Taishan will still rely on veterans Zheng Zhen and Shi Ke to carry the load. Without the competition from young central defender Mustapha, veteran Shi Ke's position in the…

Football is a game that evokes both love and hatred. A few days ago, I saw that the Football Association announced the new training list for the U20 national team. These young players are about to play in the Asian Cup at home, and honestly, this lineup looks quite interesting, unlike before when it was hard to get excited. This U20 national youth team gives people the first impression of being different. Shandong Taishan contributed seven players. These children grew up in a professional youth training system and climbed step by step with the team. Now some of them have already made their mark in the Chinese Super League. Zhu Pengyu and Mao Weijie from Dalian are also two interesting kids. They worked hard in the China League One last year, helping the team advance to the Super League. This practical experience is definitely a good thing for the national team. Wang Yudong's performance at Zhejiang team is also quite surprising. At a young age, he has played in the Chinese Super League and AFC Champions League. Such big-stage experiences are really important for a young player. Du Yuezheng is also doing well abroad. He can get substitute playing opportunities in top teams like Atletico Madrid, which shows that he indeed has some skills. Speaking of the U20 Asian Cup, the biggest advantage is playing at home. The players don't need to adjust to time differences or worry about acclimatization issues. However, to be honest, there is also pressure in playing at home. Fans' expectations will definitely be high, after…

According to the Shanghai Observer News, Shanghai Port is interested in signing former CSL Golden Boot winner Leonardo, and the top scorer from Shandong is expected to form a "Golden Boot Duo" with Wu Lei. Leonardo is no stranger to CSL fans, having played for several teams in the league. He is familiar with the local customs and understands the playing style here, which means that if he joins Shanghai Port, he will quickly integrate into the team. It's like a traveler returning home after a long journey, able to quickly adapt and play his part. It is understood that Leonardo has shown a strong interest in joining Shanghai Port. This undoubtedly adds fuel to the potential transfer. Once Leonardo successfully joins, the attacking power of Shanghai Port will be greatly enhanced. The team will have the 2024 season's CSL Golden Boot winner Wu Lei, Silver Boot winner Leonardo, and Bronze Boot winner Gustavo, perfectly filling the void left by Oscar and Bargas' departure! The combination of these three players on the front line is bound to be powerful. Leonardo (Leonardo), born on May 28, 1997 in Sorocaba, Brazil, was trained at Santos Club. In 2018, Leonardo transferred to join the Japanese J League. He was the top scorer in the J3 League and J2 League. On February 22, 2021, he joined the Chinese Super League's Shandong Taishan team! However, Leonardo did not gain trust at Taishan and was often loaned out to Ulsan Hyundai, Changchun Yatai, and Zhejiang, where he won the K League championship, the CSL Golden Boot,…

In the world of football, contract issues between coaches and teams often resemble a war without gunpowder, filled with strategies and games of wits. Recently, the contract dispute between Shandong Luneng Football Club and their Korean head coach, Choi Kang-hee, has become the focus of this "war." Choi Kang-hee, a coach with a prestigious reputation in Asian football, has won the recognition of fans since joining Shandong Luneng with his unique tactical concepts and rigorous training style. However, with the arrival of the offseason, both sides have become deadlocked over contract issues. Choi Kang-hee is eager to continue leading Luneng and hopes to gain more transfer rights to build a more competitive team for the next season. However, Shandong Luneng has explicitly rejected this request, stating that if Choi Kang-hee is willing to stay, he can continue coaching, but they will not grant him additional transfer rights. This decision undoubtedly disappointed Choi Kang-hee. As a coach with rich coaching experience, he fully understands the importance of transfer rights to a team. Without transfer rights, his influence within the team would be greatly reduced, and his income might also be affected. Therefore, his agent expressed dissatisfaction and began actively seeking other possible coaching opportunities. At the same time, rumors emerged that Choi Kang-hee was linked to the coaching position at South Korea's Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors. Although he is just one of many candidates and would need to terminate his contract with Shandong Luneng before moving to South Korea, this news still attracted the attention of fans. Some fans even called on…

The latest training list of the national football team has caught the attention with an average age dropping from 35 to just over 26, a youthful transformation that has left fans somewhat bewildered. However, upon closer inspection, it's clear that a blood transfusion is indeed necessary as the older players are visibly struggling. The changes in the national team's training list this time are quite significant. Ivanković's move towards youthfulness has directly lowered the average age to 26.7 years old, a precipitous drop that has taken many by surprise. Beijing Guoan and Shanghai Shenhua have suddenly become major contributors to the national team, with each team having 7 players selected. Shandong Taishan is not far behind, contributing 6 national team players. These teams essentially occupy half of the national team. For the double champion Shanghai Port, the situation is awkward this time, with only Yan Junling and Wei Zhen selected, while Wu Lei and Jiang Guangtai were directly overlooked. This raises questions about their current form. Hou Yongyong's performance in the Norwegian league has indeed been impressive. As the first bloodline naturalized player, his return to the national team list is well-deserved, and his Weibo post was quite touching. The inclusion of Cao Yongjing and Yang Liyu also indicates that Ivanković is truly relying on young players, especially Yang Liyu, who hasn't been in the national team for three years and has finally gotten his chance. The process of Serginho's naturalization is underway, although it has not been officially announced yet. His display of a Guoan scarf at the airport…

Shenhua New Move! 31-year-old Naturalized International Li Ke or Join, Premier League Giant Background, Defensive Iron Gate Arrives? Hey there, Shanghai Shenhua fans and all you football enthusiasts in China, we've got a big story to discuss today! Have you heard? It seems that Shanghai Shenhua is about to shake things up with the potential signing of 31-year-old naturalized international Li Ke, a midfielder with Premier League pedigree, who could be joining our Blue Devils family! Is this for real? Let's dive into it together. Last season, Shenhua soared in the Chinese Super League with an impressive record of 24 wins, 5 draws, and 1 loss. However, they fell just short of the championship by a single point. In the new season, Shenhua is not going to settle for anything less and will continue their pursuit of the coveted Fire God Cup. Coach Slutsky has been retained, and the national team players are all geared up for another shot at glory. The arrival of striker Malele has undoubtedly added more firepower to Shenhua's attack. But that's not all; in the transfer market, Shenhua is making waves, ready to make a significant impact. With Cao Yunding retiring and veterans like Jin Yangyang and Xu Yougang leaving after their contracts expired, several positions in the squad have become vacant, urgently needing fresh blood. Especially in the central midfield position, where the veteran Wu Xi will be 36 next season, despite his excellent form last season, can he maintain that level of performance? This is when Shenhua set their sights on naturalized international…

On January 6th, Beijing time, former Chinese Super League "8-time champion" Guangzhou FC announced its withdrawal from the stage of professional football in China, officially ending its 32-year history of team building. Previously, the Chinese Football Association announced the entry list for the three levels of league for the 2025 season, with 49 clubs obtaining entry qualifications. Among them, Guangzhou FC (China League One), Hebei China Fortune (Chinese Super League), and Hunan Billows (China League Two) were not included. After failing to make the entry list, Guangzhou Club followed Hunan Billows and Hebei China Fortune in announcing its dissolution. The predecessor of Guangzhou Club was the Guangzhou Football Team established in 1954. In January 1993, the Guangzhou City Football Team collaborated with the Sun God Group to become China's first government-enterprise joint-stock professional football club. In 2010, Evergrande Group acquired all the shares of Guangzhou Football Club for 100 million euros, marking the official entry of Guangzhou FC into the Evergrande era. That season, Guangzhou Evergrande was promoted from the China League One to the Chinese Super League. Subsequently, under Evergrande's massive investment, Guangzhou FC won the Chinese Super League championship for seven consecutive seasons, during which world-renowned coaches Marcello Lippi and Luiz Felipe Scolari each led the team to win an AFC Champions League title. In 2018, despite being interrupted by Shanghai SIPG in their bid for an unprecedented eight consecutive Chinese Super League titles, Guangzhou FC reclaimed the championship in 2019, equaling Dalian Shide's record as the team with the most championships in the history of China's top…

Shandong Taishan Football Club is at a critical turning point, actively preparing for the winter training of the new season while also facing significant adjustments to its management structure. These changes stem from the team's failure to meet expectations in the previous season, particularly with unsatisfactory results in the Chinese Super League (CSL), the FA Cup, and the AFC Champions League, which has led to widespread criticism and dissatisfaction among fans. In this context, current head coach Choi Kang-hee has naturally become the focus of public opinion. Many fans and industry insiders believe that Choi should bear primary responsibility for the team's poor performance, with calls for his dismissal growing louder. In fact, the club's management has recognized this issue and has held in-depth discussions about changing the head coach. However, the reality is that the contract signed between the club and Choi Kang-hee includes a high breach of contract clause worth 30 million yuan. In the current overall environment of Chinese football, this amount of breach of contract is not a small sum for any club. Facing this dilemma, Taishan team has shown a pragmatic and wise side. The club finally made a compromise decision: let Choi Kang-hee continue to serve as the head coach, but at the same time clearly define and restrict the scope of his authority. According to the new arrangement, Choi Kang-hee will mainly be responsible for the technical and tactical work of the team and on-site command during the game, which maintains the relative stability of the team's technical level and avoids the economic…