soccer schools and boardroom deals china s play for world cup glory : Sun, 06 Dec 2015 02:54:52 -0500 - (In second-last para, adds Cipitria played for Spain) By Clare Jim and Adam Jourdan HONG KONG/SHANGHAI, Dec 6 (Reuters) - Wang Shijie, 11, is a rising star among the nearly 3,000 students at Guangzhou Evergrande's huge soccer academy in south China. In schools like this around the country, China is training an army of young players it hopes will help the nation shake off its lowly place in the world's football ladder: 84th out of 209 countries, just above Qatar and below teams like Jordan, Montenegro and Gabon. "When I join the national team, I will do my best to help China become World Cup champions," Wang, wearing golden-coloured boots and a yellow jersey, told Reuters during a break in training at the school that has 50 full-size pitches and coaches flown in from European giant Real Madrid.
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