Three notable omissions from China's national football team squad: 20-year-old "Wu Lei successor" misses out, Super League interception leader disappointed

Recently, the Chinese men's national football team officially announced its latest 30-player squad. Head coach Shao Jiayi selected four goalkeepers for the list: Liu Dianzuo, Yan Junling, Yan Bingliang and Jian Tao. The defensive line includes ten players: Jiang Guangtai, Wei Zhen, Han Pengfei, Li Yang, Liu Yang, Gao Zhunyi, Xie Wenneng, Barton, Zhang Aihui and Wang Gengrui. It is worth noting that Xie Wenneng, who previously played as a forward, has been listed as a defender this time, making fans look forward to his performance as a full-back. In midfield, Shao Jiayi selected 13 players, including Gao Tainan, Wei Shihao, Yang Mingyang, Sai Niao, Chen Pu, Huang Jiahui, Cheng Jin, Tao Qianglong, Bunyamin, Wang Shangyuan, Zhong Yihao, Yang Mingrui and Dai Weijun. Although this position has the most players, it is also a weaker area for the national team, giving the coach more options.

There are only three forwards in the squad: Wang Ziming, Du Yuezhen and Zhao Songyuan. In this situation, the available choices for domestic center forwards are extremely limited. Shao Jiayi even included 17-year-old high school student Zhao Songyuan in the national team, despite the fact that he has not played in any professional league. This arrangement was clearly made out of necessity; if there were higher-quality domestic center forwards available, Zhao Songyuan would not have been called up to the national team at such an early stage. After the squad was announced, it sparked considerable discussion, as Shao Jiayi's selections could not satisfy the expectations of all fans. Next, let us look at the three notable players who missed out on selection.

First, Li Xinxiang is one of the most outstanding players around the age of 20 in the Chinese Super League. He has made multiple appearances for Shanghai Port this season, starting for most of the time, and has recorded five goals and two assists. He has already become the team's second-highest scorer and is regarded as Wu Lei's successor. However, despite his excellent performances, Li Xinxiang was still not included in the national team squad. The good news is that he has been recalled by Antonio to join the China U23 national team's Asian Games training squad and will participate in the upcoming Asian Games.

Second, Chengdu Rongcheng, the current Chinese Super League leader, has as many as seven players called up to the national team. In comparison, the similarly impressive Dalian Yingbo only had Yang Mingrui selected. This disappointed many fans, especially because 25-year-old midfield core Lü Zhuoyi failed to make the squad. During the season, he not only scored two goals and provided one assist, but also recorded 47 interceptions, ranking first in the Chinese Super League. His omission was indeed unfortunate.

Third, Beijing Guoan only had naturalized player Serginho selected, while none of the domestic players made the squad. Zhang Yuning moved to the U23 national team, Lin Liangming had not recovered his form due to injury, and Cao Yongjing's omission was also regrettable. After entering the second half of the season, his form clearly improved, and he has the potential to succeed Zhang Xizhe, having contributed three goals and three assists so far. People cannot help but recall Cao Yongjing's frequent appearances during Ivan's tenure as coach, but under Shao Jiayi, he has had limited opportunities, with the coach favoring technical midfielders such as Gao Tianyi and Dai Weijun.

Besides these three players, which other players do you think it is a pity that they were not selected for the national team?