For all the nationalism and political will, China is ploughing millions into youth development and the intention is to win the World Cup within the next 30 years
This week I watched the Chinese Super League so you don’t have to, taking in the full, slightly wild 90 minutes of the champions Guangzhou Evergrande versus last year’s runners-up Jiangsu Suning, the most recent of the CSL fixtures being shown in dribs and drabs by Sky Sports.
There was a vague point to all this beyond simple recreation. The lure of the Chinese Super League seems to lurk behind every story, every noise off, presented as a kind of gilded career-dustbin for every ageing star with a hungry agent to feed. Diego Costa and Radamel Falcao have been linked with moves this summer. Only this week Wayne Rooney has been implored not to go, reminded that he “still has so much to give”, like a man being talked down from the 27th-floor windowledge of a seven-star tower hotel.
Related: Christian Bassogog: ‘Chinese Super League has the power. More will come’
Related: China are the England of Asian football: big hopes followed by inevitable failure
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