Interview: German trainer talks about youth football development in China

Marco Pezzaiuoli, a German trainer and Youth Coordinator at Chinese football club Guangzhou Evergrande, told Xinhua in a recent interview that China has great potential in football but still has a lot of homework to do in youth training, including to set up a sound league system, to have more pitches and to introduce special rules to youth football games to folster development.

Xinhua: How is your Chinese after a year in China?

Pezzaiuoli: Do you have to start with my weakness?

Xinhua: Well, yes. We're looking forward to you speaking Chinese?

Pezzaiuoli: (laughing) Ok, I seem to be trapped.

Xinhua: And?

Pezzaiuoli: To be honest, it's terrible. I can say a few words such as right, left, pressing or counter-attack, but I obviously have to improve. And that's one of my biggest New Year resolutions to learn Chinese like I can speak Italian, Spanish, Dutch, Japanese or Korean.

Xinhua: What will take longer, you learning Chinese or China winning the World Cup?

Pezzaiuoli: You seem to be an expert for tricky questions. But never mind. I hope it takes longer for China to win the World Cup as my plan is to speak Chinese much better within the next year.

Xinhua: Any predictions when China will be ready to win a major tournament such as the World Cup?

Pezzaiuoli: To be honest, it will be a matter of decades.

Xinhua: Why?

Pezzaiuoli: Just take a look at Japan or South Korea. They have developed impressively in recent times and are still far from claiming the trophy you talked about. But that is nothing to be sad about. Football is a fascinating game that gives you so much. To see that a nation determined to improve is great. And China is developing, but things takes time. It would be no different if Germany tried to become the world's leading table tennis nation. And for China it's maybe much harder to achieve...

Xinhua: Why?

Pezzaiuoli: China is an extremely open and inquisitive country and the people are eager to learn. But just take a look at the size of this gigantic nation. 27 times bigger than Germany, here 80 million people there 1.4 billion. The first challenge is to instill a system that everybody can rely upon in your football.

Xinhua: You're thinking of a league system like in Germany or other European countries?

Pezzaiuoli: That is one of the "problems" in China, the country is far too big to have a similar system. For us that means we play a tournament twice a year. It is no secret, training does not help you as much as competitive games do. But plans are in progress to have a sort of league system with a monthly tournament style.

Xinhua: What is the biggest difference between Europe and China with regard to junior training and scouting, the size of the country or is football still a fringe sport?

Pezzaiuoli: It's a sport that has to fight for recognition. You rarely see kids playing football on the streets. You see basketball baskets and table tennis tables that are occupied from six in the morning to late at night. You rarely see football pitches, but things are starting to develop and change.

Xinhua: Any other significant differences?

Pezzaiuoli: A lot has been already done in China's junior set-up. And many have already adopted the important thought that short-term success is not the best way, meaning, don't look at the results first and foremost. Some teams still play rather defensively because they fear losing. But in modern football and the one that will be played in the future you need speed and tactical variety. We in Evergrande played against all youth teams of big European clubs, and lost many games. However we gained a lot of experience as we did at the 2016 Mercedes Benz Junior Cup which is played indoors. Nothing beats experience in football, you can practice for hours on end but you lack the competitive edge. One important topic besides that is to combine a good school education with sport. A good academic background opens your mind for sports and vice-versa.

Xinhua: Meaning junior football needs special rules or its own rules and regulations?

Pezzaiuoli: To play junior football and keep within FIFA rules for adults does not help, I think. In Europe, developing young footballers is of paramount importance. For instance it means it is detrimental if junior teams have to play a full 90 minutes. In junior football, it is important to have more substitutes and not only three like in senior football. In China many have adopted that thought too, but there is still a lot to catch up. China has an enormous potential with regard to sport and sports science, and talented youngsters. But as I said, it's a problem supporting the talents as they are spread all over the big country.

Xinhua: What is your experience when it comes to developing young coaches?

Pezzaiuoli: If you want to create good young footballers, you need good coaches. In Europe at the moment, clubs are aware of the fact that you need highly-trained specialist coaches for juniors. Meaning: You need the best to help your promising youngsters make the move from junior teams to the seniors.

Xinhua: In recent interviews, you mentioned how important the mentality of a team is. Are there any differences between Europe and China?

Pezzaiuoli: As you know my roots are European and I was trained in Germany football-wise. Therefore I feel it is important that my team fulfills certain tasks involving team building and team spirit, meaning the team and the players have to solve certain tasks on their own. It is important for a team that players care for each other.

Xinhua: What exactly are you talking about?

Pezzaiuoli: For instance video analysis of the games. I often leave it to the players to analyze our games. That helps them to understand what went well and what wrong, and what needs improvement. I tell them learn to work as a team or a group. There is not much difference when you look at other parts of life. A group has to work together and solve certain problems within the group on their own. That means in general more personal responsibility. In the end that helps the players to make the best decision on the pitch too. When a game is being played, they have to make decisions on the pitch without my help.

Xinhua: Looking at many European coaches or academy systems, it's obvious that football is open for methods from other sports. Is that something you are happy about?

Pezzaiuoli: From an early age, it's important to get a lot of input regarding your coordination, which means sticking to the so called "tunnel view", speaking of your sport only, is only the second best way. In global sport, it's vital to take a close look at other sports, techniques and training methods. Meaning just looking at table tennis does not help you like it doesn't help by only looking at football. An important point is to consider the individual needs of every player.

Xinhua: Let's get back to the national effort to install and develop football ...

Pezzaiuoli: That's a very, very important aspect. There are so many projects going on all over the country, but the most important thing has to be to coordinate everything if possible. In Europe, we have a strict schedule for the next months and year when it comes to tournaments and matches. This gives clubs and coaches the chance to set up education and development plans that help both the players and the team. And we need more football pitches in China, and pitches of better quality. China is a sports nation. If you look at the will and mindset of youth sportsman in China, I'm deeply impressed about their mentality when it comes to training and their ability to learn.

Xinhua: So you after all see a future for football in China?

Pezzaiuoli: Of course. China has, as I said, an enormous potential regarding football and sports in general. Chinese players have a high technical level. What they need in addition are competitive games. It would be enormously beneficial if more players came to Europe in order to gain experience. I'm sure several Chinese players will play in European leagues in the future. Right now Evergrande has several youth teams in Europe, for instance in Spain, to get practice.

Xinhua: Meaning the Chinese love football?

Pezzaiuoli: They love sports in general. Our games are watched by crowds averaging 65,000, which is a lot. The arena is sold out most of the time. The club is considering building a bigger stadium to give more people the chance to see the games.

Xinhua: Talking to many coaches in football, nutrition seems to be an important topic as well. What do you think about it within junior football?

Pezzaiuoli: It's definitely important. Footballers, like all other sportsmen and women, need less fat and more fruit and veg. Food for footballers has to be an important part of junior football as well- it is important to support any development. It's as important as tactics and team building.

Xinhua: So a lot has been achieved but still there is a lot to do?

Pezzaiuoli: (laughing) If you look at my Chinese, I must admit China's football is in a far better shape. Endit