731 What Is Chinese Football? (2/2)

As opposed to his previous succinct answers, Twain seemed to have a lot to say when it came to Chinese football.

”I heard you're going to change football back to the national system. I don't know how to evaluate that. If it was to only let the national football team produce results, it is understandable. Just like your country's table tennis, diving, and gymnastics, it is very effective. The whole world knows that China is the strongest in table tennis and the best in diving. Gymnastics is also traditionally China's dominant event.

”I don't think the significance in football is just about getting the national team to get the top spots in the international competitions. Football is a competition of skills and a game in which anyone can get involved and play. At the same time, it's even a lifestyle. I'm a manager of a club. For my club fans, going to the stadium once a week to watch the hometown team play is a lifestyle. That way of life has been passed down from the fathers to the sons and then to the grandchildren. It has been going on for hundreds of years. Do you understand the difference between that and yours now?

”It seems to me that although China was the original birthplace of football, there is still a long way to go in China based on what I called 'a lifestyle.' How many years has it been since professional football was introduced to China? How many years has Britain been doing it? I believe that professional football is promising in China because the Chinese people are very smart, know how to do a thing well, and will definitely do it well. The key is whether you want to do it well or not. Having done professional football for more than 10 years, football in China is still like water without a source or a tree without roots. I think it's an abysmal failure! It's a shame to the clever Chinese people!”

Twain suddenly got a little worked up, as if he were the native Chinese fan ashamed of it.

”Because of the failures in the Olympic Games and World Cup qualifiers, your General Administration of Sport of China has decided to let football revert to its former national system. I do not deny that doing so will help your country develop a team that has a corresponding place in the football world. At that time, playing in the World Cup or the Olympics will lead to results that your fans will feel acceptable. But, if I were a regular football fan, I would be sad to live in such an environment. Do you want to know why?”

”I'd like to hear the details.” Tang Jing was unknowingly captivated by Twain's loud, arrogant talk. She even forgot that this part was just a routine add-on and would not take up too much space in the article. She now had a strong idea deep down to make this part of the interview the highest priority to promote.

”How many games can a strong national team play, counting all kinds of invitation tournaments and commercial competitions? How many high-level games does a mature club team play in a year? An ordinary fan will certainly support the country's team and wave the flag to cheer on the national team game day. It's all very good. So, how about the times besides the national team match days? How does a fan find an outlet for a love and desire for football? Where can a fan find a target to entrust such an ardent conviction? Foreign teams?”

Twain snorted with a laugh. ”AC Milan? Inter Milan? Real Madrid? Barcelona? Juventus? Manchester United? Arsenal? Liverpool? Chelsea? Bayern Munich? Nottingham Forest? Or, the national teams from Germany, Italy, England, Spain, France, Portugal, Czech Republic, Brazil, Argentina, Japan, Korea... Anyway, it will not be the Chinese national team.

”Of course, they can like the above-mentioned teams, which is not a problem. No one has the right to interfere with other people's interests and choices, but they are Chinese people and Chinese football fans. The above-mentioned teams will not play every weekend at their doorsteps. The Chinese fans cannot cheer in the stadium for their favorite teams. They can only argue with the opposing fans online. They also can't get up close and personal with these stars outside the training grounds, ask for autographs, or even buy genuine team memorabilia. To be honest, this kind of love makes me feel very sad.” He shrugged and said, ”I think the Chinese people pay particular attention to a sense of belonging, but this kind of love has no sense of belonging. You love those teams, but those teams don't necessarily love you. Ah, I'm not denigrating the European teams. I just think you're too far away from them that they basically don't care about your love. What is the position of the Chinese fans who carry posters to the airport to greet their idolized teams in the eyes of the European clubs?”

Twain thought of the gold rush trip to China he did with his team. What did the Chinese fans, who were so enthusiastic to the point they almost bowed down, look like to Allan Adams and Evan Doughty? They only represented the China market—the exchange rate between the Chinese Yuan, British pound, and Euro.

What was the case for the Forest players? They were just ordinary supporters who were far away. They were at a different level from the Nottingham fans in the minds of these people. They had a duty to use victory and their own skills to please the Nottingham fans who would go to the City Ground stadium every week to support them, but they would not please those fans who were far away in China, even though they were as enthusiastic as the former.

The Nottingham Forest club received letters from fans all over the world every day. Due to the presence of Assistant Manager Dunn and Sun Jihai, there had been many letters from Chinese fans. The vast majority were postcards and souvenirs. Some of the fans were just professional ”autograph collectors” in the country, and some of them really liked the Forest team. In either case, the date of the postmark of the letters and the date on which the letter was received was almost one month apart. Was the cost of that kind of love a little too high?

”I've said so much,” Twain said. ”Can you understand my meaning, Miss Tang Jing?”

Tang Jing mechanically nodded. In fact, she had not digested Twain's words.

”The purpose of football for the General Administration of Sport of China and Chinese Football Association is absolutely not to give your country's fans a way of life in football culture,” he said. ”It does not fall within their concern and consideration. To put it nicely, their aim is that the national team's performance will improve. To put it bluntly, it is only for the achievements of these leaders currently in office. What kind of position do the Chinese fans hold in their hearts? That's an interesting question.”

Perhaps it was the mob of people that had gathered outside the stadium chanting ”The Football Association is a stupid c*nt,””Disband the China national team,””Xie X Long, f*ck your mother,” and such slogans, or it could have been the figures in the statistics of each Chinese Super League match. Regardless, it was an indistinct community with a repulsive image and not living, breathing, flesh-and-blood people with feelings. Therefore, the leaders did not need to care about the ordinary people's feelings, listen to their voices, or consider what football meant to them.

”The focus of their work is only the national team. As long as the national team does well, they will be considered good officials with achievements,” Twain said. ”As for the football culture and way of life... What is that? Can it guarantee they will be promoted and make a fortune? Can it guarantee they will have a political track record? To have football imperceptibly influence people's lives requires more than the efforts of several leadership teams. How many leaders are willing to let the fruits of their labor be taken advantage of by future generations? Should they work hard for four years and not achieve any political accomplishments just so the next generation can salvage the political achievements? On what basis? Why should someone suffer just to let others profit from it?”

Twain suddenly got up from his chair and paced around the room in an emotional state, completely forgetting that he was being interviewed. He had a lot of things on his mind that he wanted to say. He seemingly didn't care who the audience was or where he was.

Once he started talking about Chinese football, Twain began to use Mandarin to communicate with Tang Jing. He knew he might not be able to convey certain contexts in English. Shania could not understand what he said. When she saw him suddenly get agitated and stand up to pace around the room muttering nonstop, she was a little worried and said, ”Tony...”

Tang Jing also did not expect that he would have such a fierce reaction. She initially asked the question because she wanted to listen to what Tony Twain, an outsider, thought of Chinese football, which now had a bad reputation. She did not expect that although Twain discussed the matter from an outside perspective, his emotional state did not appear to be that of an outsider.

She also followed suit to stand up with her heart full of contradictions. Should she exhort Twain to calm down or hope that he continued to speak and let her hear more hot news items...

”Yes, that's what they think!” Twain turned around and stood while he waved his fists and said, ”You really did encounter some detours and diversions in the process of developing the professional football path, but that doesn't mean you have to deny everything about professional football and go back to the national professional system. Is your football problem a professional problem? Is it a matter of the star players making too much money and the club throwing away too much money? Which of the European teams and star players make too little money? Which club doesn't invest money? Are the players of countries with high-level football really such fine examples of high moral standing? Are all European clubs so squeaky clean and transparent like air? People in the system certainly don't admit that the institutional problems are the causes of it all because acknowledging it would break their livelihood, smash their rice bowls, and destroy their own interests. The push to professionalism, to those professional players with low-quality skills who can still make a lot of money and in fact have no right to speak of, makes use of society's 'hate the rich' mentality and shifts everyone's anger of the Chinese Football Association to the professional league. They are saying that with the professionalization over the years, the players are making more and more money, but the level of football is getting worse, so the fault lies with the professionalization of football. If it were not for professionalization, how would you know how incompetent and inflexible the organization that managed Chinese football for 55 years was?

”Once many years have passed, maybe your national team will be great in international football like the Soviet Union before its collapse, but your football level won't improve for a hundred years. No, there will never be progress. What does football mean to your masses? It is an Olympic event that strives for the nation's glory but is locked away from the world in a high-walled compound. It is definitely not a game for young children to play and have fun in the school playground, nor is it something the fans gather once a week for in the stadium stands or in front of the television. It is not the kind of belief, entertainment, or way of life that they will be happy, sad, angry, or deeply concerned about. It is not a living life that originates and exists from people that will continue to germinate, blossom, bear fruit, and continuously grow and strengthen uninterrupted for a hundred years without decline. It is definitely not a culture that is full of vitality and has a reasonable cycle mechanism that can regenerate and radiate far-reaching influence to make the politicians down to the civilians love it!”

After saying this in one breath, Twain looked back at Tang Jing, who was stupefied. He asked, ”Do you know what that feels like, Miss Tang Jing? When Nottingham Forest was unfortunately relegated, half the people of Nottingham city cried. When Notts County was once on the brink of bankruptcy, the other half of the city's people generously contributed money and did not expect anything in return. They donated pound by pound, hoping to save the team because that is their team! It's their hometown team, even if it's just a nobody team in the Football League Third Division North, which almost never has the hope to win the Champions League.”

”In China today, 90 percent of people were half surprised and sneered at you, saying, 'Yo, you still watch Chinese Super League? You still watch Chinese football! You shouldn't self-abuse in that way, you stupid c*n t!'” After he uttered the obscenity, Twain spread his hands. His tone finally eased. ”You see, that's the difference between the two situations, Miss Tang Jing. What's wrong with Chinese football? It's a big problem in itself. It's a big problem that breeds a host of mid-sized problems, and the mid-sized problems involve countless small problems. Ah, it's wonderful. It's a family reunion for a group photo.”

Twain laughed and said, ”So, what's the solution to the problem? To be honest, I don't think you can hope to solve it in the current situation of the sports system in China. I sympathize with you, really. I'm not kidding. I do indeed have a lot of sympathy for you all. Also, don't fantasize about one or two talented players who can help you get to the path of glory. In the future, try not to pay attention to Chen Jian. I know you are trying to introduce him to the Chinese fans and shape him into a new hopeful overseas Chinese player, but I want to warn you, Miss Tang Jing…”

Twain extended his index finger and wagged it in front of Tang Jing. ”He's absolutely not the savior of Chinese football. He's just an ordinary young man who wants to make a living from football. He is a bit silly but has good luck. If my player is ruined by your meaningless delusions, today will be the last time I'll accept your interview.”

When Tang Jing was about to leave, it was clear from her appearance that she was still in a daze from Twain's speech. Apparently, the interview impacted her far more than any of his previous conversations in front of the media. She really needed to get back and digest it. Fortunately, although she was still in a daze, the recorder in her hands still worked faithfully and completely recorded Twain's every word.

When she left, she clearly understood one thing. If this story was published, the impact of ”the most successful young manager” interview turning into ”Tony Twain's world” interview would be incomparable. To publish this piece, she might even have to take some risks.

※※※

Shania did not care about the impact Twain's words would have on the country's football community. She wondered about his vehemence in the last moments. What would agitate him so much that he could not even help himself?

Twain hugged her, shook his head, and smiled. ”She asked a question that I could not explain clearly in one or two sentences, and the question was easy for someone to lose their cool and calm about. I'm really sorry to have scared you, Shania. It's alright now. At least I don't have to continue to worry about that problem. Let's have some fun!”

He suddenly grabbed Shania and threw her onto the bed. Shania's screams soon turned into gentle moans...

※※※

Tang Jing came out of the elevator and found Dunn sitting on the couch facing the elevator in the lobby.

”I guess the interview took longer than expected,” he said as he saw Tang Jing walking over.

”Sorry, the last question caused the interview plan to spin out of control.” Tang Jing shook her head and said, ”He got very worked up and said a lot.”

Dunn was somewhat interested and asked, ”What was the question?”

”I asked him what he thought of Chinese football. I originally wanted to hear what a foreigner thought of something that we ourselves think is rotten. The result came as a surprise.” Tang Jing spoke in a low voice as she frowned and recalled the scene. ”He said a lot. Some stuff we did not know, and some stuff we never thought about. He also said some stuff we know and think about but dare not say. I've decided! I'll take out his answer on its own and publish the full text without a single change in his words!”

”I can imagine what Tony said,” Dunn replied. ”Aren't you afraid that publishing it will bring trouble?”

Tang Jing smiled sweetly and ran her fingers through the hair dangling in front of her. ”What could be the trouble? If there's blame from the top, I'll shoulder it. At the most, I'll quit. Losing a job is not a big deal.”

Dunn looked at the determined woman in front of him. He opened his mouth but said nothing.

Tang Jing lifted her wrist to look at the watch. It was already 10 p.m.

”Ah, it's so late! I have to get back.” She waved to Dunn and said, ”Goodbye, Dunn!”

”Goodbye.” Dunn stood at the entrance and waved goodbye to Tang Jing. He watched her get into the taxi and muttered, ”I wish you good luck...”