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ChIna has a new football reform plan to develop the game. It includes professional clubs and leagues, national teams and grassroots football. In recent years, a large number of professional players from across the world have moved to China to ply their trade. In an exclusive interview with ChinAfrica, Ivorian pro Davy Claude angan n’guessan, playing for Hangzhou Greentown in the Chinese Super League, talks about the contrasting experience of playing in China compared to his home country, the football scenario in China, and how the financial clout backing the game in the world’s most populous nation is having positive outcomes for the sport. ChinAfrica: What is your experience of playing football in China?
Davy Claude angan: It’s always the same everywhere. Only the first year was difficult, then the next two years were ok. At first, it was difficult because I had to adapt to the weather, to the environment, which was very different from the environment in my country. It was [also] difficult because of the language[which] I couldn’t understand.
Now, it’s ok. I can understand Chinese, I am used to the weather, so everything is fine. Every time you begin in a new place, it’s difficult, you need some time to adapt.
What’s different compared to the previous clubs you’ve played for?
There is no big difference. The only difference I can think of is that in my previous club, we were fighting for the title, for the championship. We had to win, we had high goals. Now, I’m playing for a mid-table club. If we are lucky and we manage to progress, that’s good, but we don’t have much ambition. The only ambition is to stay in first division, to stay in the first 10 clubs.
What is the football environment like in China?
It’s a bit difficult for a foreigner to play football in China, especially when we just arrive. It moves very fast, we are under pressure. We have more pressure than the Chinese players because in China, it’s the foreigners [who] make the difference. That means that we have performance obligations, results obligations. We have to meet expectations.
But now, it’s fine for me because I have earned the supporters’ trust.
has football in China progressed in recent years?
It has already progressed, and it’s still progressing. Now, China has very good stadiums, they put a lot of money in football.
What is the football scene like in your current city hangzhou?
In Hangzhou, we have a lot of young players, we train them very well. Football in Hangzhou is very professional, far more than in my country. In C?te d’Ivoire, football is not very professional because we don’t have enough money to build stadiums, to train players. In China, it’s the contrary. Hangzhou is a very good city for football [with] great facilities. So[it] can easily attract good players.
We have a very good staff. Even [though] the trainer changed recently, the team is still the same. We support each other, we have a very good professional and sportive atmosphere. I have two Tunisian colleagues, one Lebanese, one Brazilian; the others are Chinese. We get along very well.
Davy Claude angan: It’s always the same everywhere. Only the first year was difficult, then the next two years were ok. At first, it was difficult because I had to adapt to the weather, to the environment, which was very different from the environment in my country. It was [also] difficult because of the language[which] I couldn’t understand.
Now, it’s ok. I can understand Chinese, I am used to the weather, so everything is fine. Every time you begin in a new place, it’s difficult, you need some time to adapt.
What’s different compared to the previous clubs you’ve played for?
There is no big difference. The only difference I can think of is that in my previous club, we were fighting for the title, for the championship. We had to win, we had high goals. Now, I’m playing for a mid-table club. If we are lucky and we manage to progress, that’s good, but we don’t have much ambition. The only ambition is to stay in first division, to stay in the first 10 clubs.
What is the football environment like in China?
It’s a bit difficult for a foreigner to play football in China, especially when we just arrive. It moves very fast, we are under pressure. We have more pressure than the Chinese players because in China, it’s the foreigners [who] make the difference. That means that we have performance obligations, results obligations. We have to meet expectations.
But now, it’s fine for me because I have earned the supporters’ trust.
has football in China progressed in recent years?
It has already progressed, and it’s still progressing. Now, China has very good stadiums, they put a lot of money in football.
What is the football scene like in your current city hangzhou?
In Hangzhou, we have a lot of young players, we train them very well. Football in Hangzhou is very professional, far more than in my country. In C?te d’Ivoire, football is not very professional because we don’t have enough money to build stadiums, to train players. In China, it’s the contrary. Hangzhou is a very good city for football [with] great facilities. So[it] can easily attract good players.
We have a very good staff. Even [though] the trainer changed recently, the team is still the same. We support each other, we have a very good professional and sportive atmosphere. I have two Tunisian colleagues, one Lebanese, one Brazilian; the others are Chinese. We get along very well.