The football dreams of youth from the northwest are nurtured here.

Reported by Zuo Rui from Xi'an. On March 16, after the closing ceremony of the 2026 Chinese Football Association Men's Elite Youth Player Xi'an Regional Training Camp, the last thing all players did before leaving was to return the full set of training gear bearing the CFA logo. Everyone here wore uniform attire during training, which was returned at the camp's end, and all look forward to being called up again, to wear this kit once more.

All 60 players from the 2012 age group received a participation certificate. Below their names, a shared message reads: "The road may be long, but walking will get you there; we hope you forge ahead and chase your dreams relentlessly! Tasks may be tough, but doing them ensures success; we wish you persevere and never give up!" The Xi'an Regional Youth Training Center is where they entrust their goals and harbor their dreams.

Zhang Hao, head coach of Team C in the training camp, said that although the children participating are only potential candidates for future national youth teams, "I can see that when wearing the kit with the Chinese Football Association emblem, the sense of honor in striving for the country is always evident. Their determination to persist on this football path becomes even firmer."

Center forward Yuan Long of Team C is not his first time here. He admits feeling reluctant each time he returns the gear, "How nice it would be if I could keep wearing this outfit." According to Zhang Hao, children selected for the camp cherish this honor. Although they still have considerable distance from the national youth team, and may not even enter the national-level youth training center camps, "even if they only attend one session, the immense motivation they gain internally will last a long time."

Yuan Long started football training in third grade of elementary school. Cristiano Ronaldo and Wei Shihao are his idols. This eighth-grade student usually trains at the Hengli Club in Pingluo County, Shizuishan City, Ningxia—the only team from Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region registered for the China Champions League this year. During his first集训 at the Xi'an regional camp, everything felt novel to him, starting from "the warm-up methods."

The one-week training included half-hour morning sessions, 90-minute training sessions each in the morning and afternoon. Besides self-study, homework, and training diaries at night, courses such as Football English, patriotic education, and player leadership were arranged. It is understood that the camp, considering the children's developmental stage, focuses on cultivating habits of "training with difficulty, strictness, and practicality" and diligent practice. Outdoor training emphasizes football technique and tactical awareness, while indoor training focuses on agility and flexibility.

Among the special evening courses, Football English aims to broaden players' international perspective and foster foreign language learning habits. Leadership courses intend to strengthen team spirit and sense of responsibility, enhancing cohesion and combat effectiveness. Through patriotic education, Yuan Long realized that mistakes can be made in training, but should be minimized in matches, and one must steadfastly love the motherland. "The national flag and anthem are very important to every athlete. Although we cannot represent China yet, our chest badges also bear the word 'China'."

Camp life management is also strict, with only one hour free before bedtime each night for personal activities and phone use. However, being together daily with like-minded peers sharing similar goals, Yuan Long makes many new friends each time he attends the camp. This time, he instantly bonded with Ding Jiayang from Xi'an; they not only added each other on WeChat but also planned to invite each other to their hometowns.

This camp session has six forwards. Through competing on the same field, Yuan Long feels he has advantages in physique and speed, and his forward runs and ball control are decent, but his ability to seize opportunities still lags compared to other forwards. As before, each集训 boosts his confidence more, and each identified shortcoming he addresses through extra training back in Ningxia.

In Zhang Hao's eyes, these children born in 2012 vary in height and build; not only are their physical differences large, but their football technical abilities also fluctuate greatly. "Some who performed average last time improve dramatically the next. Others show the opposite pattern." Children who perform well, score high, and receive high ratings in the camp are marked as "key focus" candidates. Players like Yuan Long, who have attended three consecutive sessions, feel stronger honor and pride, and have better chances to reach their dream destination.

Hu Yule, a winger for Team B, is one of ten players supplied by Xi'an Gaoxin Yilian Football Club. This club, cooperating with Xi'an Gaoxin No.1 Middle School, contributed the second-highest number of players to this Xi'an regional camp session, after the attached middle school of Shaanxi Normal University. Like Yuan Long, Hu Yule has attended three集训 sessions. Hu Yule approaches everything seriously, even the final training session combining games with drills, showing full engagement. In games like net football and passing-shooting drills, he displays comprehensive basic skills and solid left-foot technique.

Team B head coach Zhou Lin said Hu Yule's technical movements are coordinated, and he has a strong desire to win. Four months ago during集训, he was relatively weak physically, but now his physical strength has noticeably improved. "Based on camp performance, he not only progressed compared to the previous session, but also improved from the first to the second match within this session."

In the first match, Hu Yule seemed not to trust his new teammates much, dribbling excessively. Zhou Lin told him that failing to recognize teammates' strengths and seeking their help is not acceptable. In the two segments of the second match, he scored a goal assisted by teammates and also provided an assist. "Yes, after the first match, the coach said my dribbling affected the team's offensive flow. In the second match, I followed the coach's instructions, made changes, and felt I gained a lot."

Zhou Lin believes that understanding determines execution, whether for adult professional players or young training players. "There may be multiple choices for handling a ball; for most players, making the most reasonable choice from them is also a form of creativity." Through on-field thinking and questioning, Hu Yule understood the coach's intent and his own shortcomings, and could quickly apply what he learned on the field. "This is precisely the effect we coaches want," Zhou Lin said.

Through teammates' collaboration and coaches' guidance, Hu Yule's self-awareness became more comprehensive and clearer. He realizes that a few days of training won't bring qualitative change in ability, but objectively recognizing his strengths and weaknesses, finding direction for improvement is more important. Hu Yule is confident: "After returning, I will integrate these insights into my regular training and matches."

Normally, Hu Yule believes in his one-on-one breakthrough ability. He thinks his dribbling and breakthroughs can help the team in attack. Here, at the regional training camp, demands and overall team level are higher, but he can adjust his mindset and perform freely on the field. "Deficiencies in small techniques" will be one focus for targeted extra training after returning to school.

Hu Yule, still in eighth grade, has already set his future goal—to play in professional leagues and enter the national team. "My parents also support me in this. Without their support, I might have quit long ago." Having loved football since childhood, he has sweated, cried, and bled for football, and also gained much joy. "If I gave up and didn't persist on the football path, I would feel I couldn't account for my efforts, my childhood."

According to Xi'an Yilian Gaoxin Club's plan, Hu Yule and his peers will be retained and collectively sent to high school, continuing to study and train simultaneously, chasing their dreams. If scouted by professional club youth teams of the Chinese Super League, he would not want to miss such an opportunity. "Of course, I would seek my parents' opinions and decide together with them."

In the view of Richard, a coach at the Xi'an Youth Training Center, within the Xi'an regional training camp, children as confident as Hu Yule are not many. Comparatively, children from coastal areas and developed cities are noticeably more confident, possibly because they come from better professional club youth systems. "Children from northwest regions might initially be more nervous and shy; they likely know they face some challenges."

As a relatively neutral and less prejudiced "foreigner," Richard's above observation was partly confirmed during evening classes. When the presenter asked questions, few children actively raised hands to answer. To increase interaction, the presenter had to randomly点名, and when个别队员 responded passively, their expressive ability was quite limited. This shows the necessity of courses like player leadership.

According to Zhou Lin, presenter of the "Player Leadership" course, about 10 out of the 60集训 players are captains of their respective teams. "Not only captains need to learn this course; everyone in the team needs to improve communication skills, expressive ability, to motivate and unite teammates, forming合力 to help the team." If Hu Yule and new teammates could communicate effectively on the field, perhaps he wouldn't need post-match单独指导 from the coach to quickly adjust and respond.

"We all know technical training is important, but in the training camp, more crucial are the players' spirit and mindset—whether they can adapt and adjust immediately, whether they can learn from our guidance and impact matches." Richard said that毕竟 northwest youth training is relatively weaker compared to more established regions like coastal or northeast areas. The camp cannot demand players must enter national teams; "it can only say this provides an opportunity. Whether they can seize this opportunity, whether they deserve this opportunity, depends on their performance."