Italy, Milan icon Franco Baresi urges Chinese Super League to create football ‘culture’
China’s football has fallen behind – the Italian says it should work to develop grass roots and infrastructure rather than importing players
World Cup winner Franco Baresi has urged China to create a football “culture” if they want to improve their standing on the world stage.
China are encountering a difficult period in the sport, with the men’s side bottom of their group in Asia’s third round of World Cup qualifying, while the women’s team failed to qualify for the Paris Olympic Games.
In the late 2010s, the Chinese Super League underwent a huge spending spree, as players such as Oscar, Carlos Tevez, Javier Mascherano and Alexandre Pato, as well as many others, moved in on huge contracts.
However, because of the financial impact of the Covid-19 crisis, the outlays were reeled in and clubs in China have fallen way behind their Asian counterparts.
China have not had an AFC Champions League winner since Guangzhou Evergrande in 2015, and the same club’s semi-final appearance in 2019 was the last time a Chinese side reached the last four of the competition.
Baresi has suggested the money could have been better spent on infrastructure to create a local footballing culture, rather than attempt to import it from abroad.
