A group of children pose for the camera during a training session organized by Sport8 in Beijing. (File photo/China Daily)
(ECNS) -- Chinese billionaire Xu Jiayin, owner of football club Guangzhou Evergrande, said big-money foreign signings are not the answer to China's football future because the key still lies in nurturing young domestic talent.
The club has spent heavily on international football stars that have propelled the club to an unprecedented six straight Chinese Super League titles.
Guangzhou Evergrande will not join the competition for importing more big-name foreign stars, Xu, a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, said at a news conference in Beijing on Thursday on the sidelines of the CPPCC's annual session. [Special coverage]
Xu also said that so far he doesn't see a potential Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo among the 2,800 youths at the club's football academy. But he said he believes that as a country with more than 1 billion people China is certain to produce outstanding players.
The most promising prospects from the academy in Guangdong Province are sent to Spain when they turn 13 to train under former Real Madrid youth coaches.
Xu said the national team will enter a new level next year due to world-class coaches and new management methods.
