Interview with Wu Qing: Chongqing Tongliang Dragon surpasses and needs to wait for an opportunity

Reporter Lu Mi reports The 2024 season has ended. For Chongqing Tonglianglong, this season is a bit regrettable. As promoted horses, they have been doing well and have been in the Super League for a long time in the first half of the season. However, after the FA Cup was eliminated by Shandong Taishan, Chongqing Tonglianglong had a significant decline, 8 rounds of winless, during which it lost to Jiangxi Lushan, the penultimate in the Chinese League, and everyone felt that Tonglianglong stepped on the brakes on the road to overtake.

Wu Qing, head of the coaching staff of Chongqing Tonglianglong, accepted an exclusive interview with this reporter, reviewed the past season, and made a detailed analysis of the fall from the super zone to fifth.

◆Football: In the 2024 season, Tonglianglong finally ranked fifth in the Chinese League, does this ranking meet your expectations?

Wu Qing: Overall, it was in line with expectations. As you know, we have a lot of young players, and it's the first time we've played in the first league. At the beginning of the season, we didn't expect such a standing, after all, the goal was to keep six out of ten. There are more Chongqing players in our team, and everyone is very united and maintains the core combat effectiveness, so getting this ranking is still in line with expectations.

◆Chongqing Tongliang Dragons is a promoted horse, and in the first half of the 2024 season, they have been rushing to the super zone, what was the situation at that time?

Halfway through, we did get a good result. In addition to our own good performance in the first half, there were actually a lot of teams that had problems with their performance, so there was also some element of luck. If we can get the same points in the second half as we can in the first half, then we will definitely rush to the top, but I knew at the time that the second half of the race was going to be difficult.

◆There was a significant decline in the second half, in the opinion of the coaching staff, what was the reason?

I predicted that this would happen. Whether it's in the first half of the season or after the mid-season signings, the problem of our forward efficiency has not been well solved, that is, there are too few people who can finish the game. What Xiang Yu Wang did was actually beyond his ability and responsibility, and there was no one else to share it with him. In general, the overall ability is still insufficient, resulting in the inability to replicate the results of the first half.

◆It was only in August that the club shouted the slogan to overtake, what happened then?

At that time, we were still hopeful, and the club also thought that after coming to this point, it would definitely not lower the target, and if the team really had the possibility to complete the overtake, it was impossible not to do it.

◆Not directly surpassing the success, for the fans must be a little disappointed, what do you think of their mood?

I think it's understandable for the fans, I have so many years of professional experience, whether it's the love of the fans, whether it's scolding, the club and the players need to face it correctly. My personal opinion is that, first of all, the team has done a good job, both in terms of rankings and the young players who have achieved great training results through this platform, which is beyond expectations.

As for the problem of overtaking, objectively, we do not yet have comprehensive strength, everyone sees hope, in fact, we still have shortcomings. Football has the law of football, for Chongqing football, I hope our team is sustainable, our young players have a lot of room to rise, this year through exercise to improve, this will bring better cause and effect, not that we don't want to rush, but we need to wait for an opportunity, all the conditions are met, things will naturally fall into place.

◆Football: In September, when Lin Lin, the head of the coaching staff, left the company and you took over the team temporarily, what was the biggest difficulty for you at that time?

Wu Qing: There are many difficulties. I went from being a player-assistant coach to a decision-maker, leading the team independently for the first time; Secondly, there is too much work to be done, the division of labor of the coaching staff, the ideological work of the players, and even the re-arrangement of the competitive level. Basically, for the first two weeks, I could only sleep for about five hours a day, and my brain was running anytime and anywhere, and I was also a new coach, so I had to explore and make some judgments based on my previous experience with foreign coaches. After two weeks, things are much better, with a constant rotation of games every week, summing up games, analysing opponents, and the coaching staff working together more and more fluidly.

◆In the second half of the race, what kind of mentality did you and your teammates have?

I've been taking nine games for two months. When I took over the team, I was basically in a situation where there were not many opportunities to overtake, but after one or two rounds, it seemed that I saw hope again. Combined with the performance of the game, I believe you can see that we have a strong desire to overtake, especially the young players, and you can feel from the words and deeds of the players that they want to overtake 100 per cent. I always stressed to the team that whether we play a weak team or a strong team, we will show our spirit and fight with all our might. For me, it's just about trying to integrate the most suitable starters based on my understanding of football, and integrate the team's combat power to the best.

◆Against strong teams such as Yukun and InBev, the Tongliang Dragons played very well, and they can see the tenacity of this team, and the results are also very good, what do you think the spiritual power of this team comes from?

That's something I'm very happy about. Whether it's the veteran players or the young players of 03, they have their own professional pursuits, and there are more local players in the team, and they have a strong sense of responsibility and mission, which I think is something in their bones. The cohesion of the team does not need to be emphasized, when I led the team to the last game, although there was no hope of overtaking, but everyone was still fighting for the victory, we scored at the last moment, and even before the end of the game, we could not do it without mental strength. I believe that the spiritual things are the good things that our Chongqing football has inherited, and I also believe that this team will definitely go to a higher platform when the time comes.

◆You are one of the representatives of Chongqing football, whether it is when you were a player or now you are leading the team as a coach. At that time, Chongqing football disappeared from the professional field, and now there is Tonglianglong, this team has carried a lot?

After the dissolution of Chongqing Liangjiang Athletic before, this team from the Champions League to the Chinese League, one step a year, does carry the heavy responsibility of Chongqing football to return to the stage of China's top league, but we have not done it this year. But I don't think it's a bad thing, we have a lot of Under-21 players getting a workout and that's something we've built up for the future. The burden on them will get heavier and heavier in the future, and according to this trend, I think Chongqing football will soon return to the Chinese Super League, and we will do it in this direction.

◆What do you think about the chemistry between the old and new players over the past two seasons?

Mesozoic players may have less time to play in the past two years, two aspects, one is the players themselves, and the second is that we need young players to have good training opportunities and have room for improvement, after all, these players have made history for us Chongqing since the National Games, and we value their growth more. From the perspective of the long-term construction of the team, it is necessary for the Mesozoic players to withstand, including after Xiao Kun came, everyone saw that his role was obvious. Veterans Zhao Hejing and Huang Xiyang have indeed played a good role in the team, and the faces they show in training, games and even life are role models for young players.

◆"Football": After the league, three young players in the team, Xiang Yuwang, Li Zhenquan and Wang Shiqin, were selected into the U21 national youth training team, what is your evaluation of these three players?

Wu Qing: Not only the three of them, I think there are many players on the team, such as Song Pan, etc., who have a lot of games this year, and they also have the strength to compete for national brands. I think what is more important than personal ability is the education of setbacks on the way to their growth. For example, we didn't make it to the top this year, and in the process, every ups and downs brought them frustration. Like I have experienced relegation and promotion in Chongqing before, it is a very painful lesson. These young players have come from the National Games, and there are more victors, so I think they still need to grow in this area, and it will be more beneficial for them to maintain a humble attitude at all times.

◆Will there be a fear that they will be poached?

I definitely don't want them to leave, both emotionally and intellectually. But football is a market behavior, and even if there is such a day, it is a normal thing. Of course, this is a decision made at club level.

◆Overall, what do you think is the most valuable lesson that this team has gained in this year's league?

I think the most precious thing is that our players have experienced the frustration and brutality of the professional league. As I mentioned earlier, most of the time before they stepped onto the professional stage, it was a smooth ride, and the ups and downs they experienced this year have been a great experience in their careers. In terms of results, it is true that we have slowed down the pace of the overtaking, but their understanding of the league and football has been deepened, and I believe that their ability to adjust themselves has also been enhanced, and they have a better mentality to prepare for the next season.

◆At the end of the season, what do you think about the club next year as a manager?

I haven't talked to the club yet, but what I know is that the club is also in contact with some foreign coaches. I'm positioning myself as an assistant coach next year and doing my best to help the new coach.

◆What is the team's winter training plan like now? Will the team adjust the target next year, will the team prepare for the overtake from the start of winter training?

The current plan is to take the holiday on December 3, and the specific plan may need to be implemented after the head coach for the new season is confirmed. Next year's recruitment, team building, including season goals, all need to be decided after the big framework is set. The club will definitely choose a more suitable coach, and the dust will soon settle.

◆Do you have any expectations for the future operation of Tonglianglong?

As part of the team, we certainly welcome partner companies to help the club, which is a great thing. Personally, I definitely hope that there will be more good factors that will help the future development of this club, after all, good security is rare in the current football environment.