Xinjiang claim 1st win at National Games
Chances for qualification dim due to previous losses
Uyghur forward Feilati Yimingjiang scored twice on Tuesday against National Games hosts Tianjin to give his team Xinjiang their first win in the tournament.
Representing the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, the Xinjiang under-20 team is the only team with a squad comprising only ethnic minorities at the National Games.
But coach Pulati Hutuleke is dissatisfied with the team’s performance though the players sealed their first win in the eight-team competition.
“I think we played better in the previous two games than today,” Pulati told the Global Times.
“Today although we win, the players’ attitude changed for some time and they were not positive all the time.”
The coach was referring to his players picking up five yellow cards in the second half, when they were already leading the game with two goals.
Pulati noted the Tianjin team had left a lot of room for Xinjiang to attack, but his players wasted too many chances because of poor passing.
The coach also singled out forward Feilati, who he said improved from his previous performance.
“He was very anxious in the previous games, only hoping to score by himself,” Pulati said. “I told him that he should consider contributing to the team first.”
Feilati was close to scoring a hat trick in the 72nd minute, but he wasted the one-on-one chance by shooting it wide. The center forward spearheaded Xinjiang’s offense, creating opportunities for the wingers to progress down the flanks.
He said the team’s goal was to qualify for the top four, but after losing two group games, what was left for Xinjiang was the pride to defend.
The Xinjiang team at recent National Games were often hailed for good tactical moves, though the autonomous region is yet to have a professional club in China’s top-tier league.
Pulati also revealed that the team started preparing for the 2017 National Games as early as 2011, thanks to Xinjiang’s wide depth of talented soccer players.
“Kids love soccer; it’s kind of natural thing for them,” the coach added. “Though the conditions related to soccer are not very good, it’s improving.”
Some of the Xinjiang players had their first experience on a flight when they traveled from Urumqi, capital of Xinjiang, to Tianjin.
While some fans are worried that Xinjiang’s talents may waste their chance of becoming a future star as there is no place for them to grow after the National Games, Pulati said things have changed after a professional club in Xinjiang entered the Chinese secondtier league.
The game, only a ranking playoff, also had Chinese Football Association Vice President Lin Xiaohua in attendance.
Xinjiang will play against Jiangsu, who on Tuesday won over Sichuan 3-0. Later on Tuesday, Zhejiang won against Hubei 2-1 while Shanghai defeated Liaoning 1-0.