The alarming dearth of Chinese players in the world's major soccer leagues is a worrying sign for the state of game's health here.

These days, Zhang Yuning is the sole Chinese representative in Europe's elite divisions, but the 21-year-old hasn't had much to cheer of late.

Zhang began his overseas career in the Netherlands with Vitesse, signing a two-year contract with the Arnhem-based Eredivisie club.

Mainly playing as a back-up striker, he caught the eye of West Bromwich Albion and moved to the Premier League club in July last year on a three-year contract for an undisclosed fee.

The Baggies immediately loaned Zhang out to Werder Bremen for two years to gain first-team experience but it hasn't happened for the China international in Germany and it is rumored a return home is on the cards.

Not so long ago, Chinese fans could follow the exploits of Sun Jihai, Yang Chen and Zheng Zhi, who all made their mark in the top tiers of England, Germany and Scotland, respectively.

Defender Sun was a fan favorite at Manchester City during the 2000s, and thrilled supporters back home by becoming the first Chinese player to score in the English Premier League, as well as the UEFA Cup.

Striker Yang was the first Chinese to bag a Bundesliga goal, hitting the net 21 times for Eintracht Frankfurt. Elsewhere, Shao Jiayi and Zheng Zhi enjoyed a degree of success in Germany and Scotland with Energie Cottbus and Celtic, respectively.

The now-retired Shao was the last Chinese player to score in one of the world's top soccer leagues－in 2008, for then-Bundesliga outfit Cottbus.

In an exclusive interview with China Daily, Shao urged more Chinese youngsters to try and follow their soccer dreams abroad.

Step up

"There's no doubt that playing in the more competitive top leagues improves a player's technique," said Shao. "Playing against strong opponents, communicating with top coaches and working with more professional clubs takes players to the next level."

Based on his own experience, Shao also believes playing abroad matures players on many levels－not just their skills on the ball.

"There are some obvious differences between the domestic leagues in China and the foreign leagues," said Shao. "Domestic players can experience different soccer cultures in the top leagues in Europe.

"From the psychological perspective, playing outside China will improve our understanding of the game and increase our confidence."

Gao Yuan, the director of the soccer studies department at the Capital University of Physical Education and Sports in Beijing, concurs with Shao.

"Playing at the highest level will help young Chinese players grasp a better understanding of soccer culture and to master a more scientific and advanced knowledge of the sport," he said.

"Learning the modern scientific concept of the game that incorporates team management, club operation and training methods is another major benefit," Gao added.

"We have generations of promising players who need to stand on the global stage. Letting the world see them is like letting the world see China. In the future, domestic clubs should send more players to foreign leagues."

Academic pressure

So why is China struggling to produce a new generation of stars to follow in Sun and Yang's footsteps?

Shao believes a major reason behind the talent vacuum is the academic pressure faced by children these days.

"I remember when I was young, I could have soccer training every day after school, but it is hard for children to do that now because of the academic pressure on them," said Shao.

"For the same reason, many parents won't allow their children to play soccer for too long.

"We should send more children to the soccer field and help them balance the sport and their life through the support of the government."

Both Shao and Gao stressed the need for more professional coaches in China, with the latter calling for a greater emphasis on physicality.

"Youth training has always been the core issue," said Gao. "If our kids are to enter top international leagues, we have to train them to be more physical and confrontational on the field, both mentally and physically. A lack of aggressiveness has always been a weakness of our players."

Both men also agreed that the government's continued support for soccer here will play a vital role in producing better players.

Launched in 2016, the government's "Medium and Long-Term Plan of Chinese Football Development" outlines a multi-decade strategy to increase soccer participation in the country and stipulates a number of pragmatic measures to attain its goals, including pitch construction, favorable taxation policies for clubs and building 20,000 soccer academies by 2020.

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