Qatar World Cup is in full swing, China's men's soccer team is experiencing an unprecedented critical moment! Li Tie was suddenly taken away from the coaching training course in Dalian, and a storm quietly descended. Li Tie's bronze statue outside the Wulihe Stadium in Shenyang was mysteriously removed, what happened?
The media revealed that Li Tie's encounter is much more than what it seems. In just one bank in Shenyang, he has more than 1 billion yuan in deposits, and a mansion in the United States is the tip of the iceberg that highlights his wealth. In both club and national teams, Li Tie sees soccer as a commercial chess game rather than a lifelong pursuit. His involvement in the soccer world is like a "business deal" in the middle of winter, selling jujubes and tea at coaching courses, repeatedly testing the bottom line of Chinese soccer, and ignoring the voices of the fans.
First, 30 million dollars a year to become the first local coach
Seemingly modest, pragmatic, but Li Tie act smooth, everywhere shows the shrewd side. In the strange city of Wuhan, he won wide acclaim with his high emotional intelligence.In November 2017, Li Tie officially took charge of Wuhan Zhuoer coaching whip, after he had served as the club's general manager and sports director. Becoming the real power holder of the club, Li Tie has left a rare footprint in the history of Chinese soccer. Looking to the future, I believe he can bring the Wuhan club to a higher peak.
Li Tie signed a five-year contract with the Wuhan club, with an annual salary of up to 30 million yuan and a signing fee of 30 million yuan, payable over five years. It became the highest paid local manager in the history of the Chinese Super League. However, this contract could not be filed in the CFA and could only be operated privately. Li Tie had a strained relationship with the Wuhan club and even asked the CFA leadership to put pressure on him for his salary during his coaching stint with the national team.
Second, signing players with companies and suppressing playing time for naturalized players
As mentioned in previous articles, Li Tie is associated with nine companies with business in various industries. Among them, he has a close relationship with a brokerage company that privately signs contracts with players and sends those players to the national team. Li Tie put this tactic to good use. A powerful player was unable to enter the national team because he refused to sign with the brokerage company.
In 2018, the Chinese Football Association (CFA) introduced a naturalization policy that raised questions. The FA resisted the pressure and allowed foreigners such as Eckerson, Luo Guofu and Allen to enter Chinese men's soccer. This policy has helped Chinese soccer rise rapidly, enter the Qatar World Cup, and stimulate the market. However, in the hands of Li Tie, this policy turned into a "bad move", as he only gave opportunities to players who were interested in him, resulting in Luo Guofu and Allen getting very little playing time, which led to a lot of controversy.
Li Tie's approach is irresponsible for the future of Chinese soccer, he ignored the expectations of the fans and allowed the Chinese men's soccer team to repeat the same mistakes and move towards self-destruction. For the sake of personal interests, no matter what the cost.
Third, the private bandwagon has disgraced Chinese soccer
The Chinese men's soccer team narrowly finished in the top 12 ahead of the World Cup qualifiers. Li Tie, however, was complacent, rebutting questions for nearly half an hour at a press conference on the top 12 loss to Australia, saying, "No one knows Chinese soccer and national soccer players better than I do." Then, playing the bitter role, he claimed that the national soccer team had spent a long time in West Asia and could not return home, causing displeasure among the fans.
What is most unacceptable to fans is that Li Tie did not forget to post advertisements on his personal microblog to promote China's promotional sports brands, beverages and teas during the Top 12 national football matches. These advertising brands competed with Chinese men's soccer sponsors. The sponsors later sued Li Tie to the CFA for leading the team to the World Cup qualifiers, and the matter eventually came to an end.
IV. Conclusion
In the national team coaching period, Li Tie has long forgotten his mission. At this time, he has been completely reduced to a businessman, only focus on their own "big business", has long forgotten the interests of Chinese soccer. Because of his selfishness, the Chinese men's soccer team missed the World Cup again and lost the face of Chinese soccer.
Li Tie being taken away is just the beginning. Former national soccer team goalkeeper Zhang Lu was also called to tea. It is reported that Li Jinyu, Li Weifeng, Hao Wei and other soccer leaders are involved, a new round of "football storm" is coming, Chinese soccer is in dire need of clean land!
