A four-hundred-kilometer round trip with the original intention of football

"Suining Goalkeeper" Liu Yuhang:

Liu Yuhang is on the court.

Late at night on October 12, the traffic on the Chongqing-Rong Expressway was gradually thinning. Liu Yuhang held the steering wheel and glanced at the dashboard. It was almost 12 o'clock, and he still had more than an hour to get home. The reason why he rushed back to Chengdu immediately after the game was because on a new day, there was still a group of football teenagers waiting for his teaching.

More than an hour ago, at the Suining Sports Center, the Sichuan Super League Suining team played against the Nanchong team at home. As the goalkeeper of the Suining team, Liu Yuhang came on the court despite being ill and fought bravely. The two sides finally shook hands and settled for a 2:2 draw.

After the fourth round of the Sichuan Super League, Liu Yuhang’s name has caused ripples in the football circle. Facing the fierce attack of the Chengdu team, he made more than 20 saves in a single game, and netizens gave him the title of "Suining Goalkeeper". Behind the halo is the 15-centimeter-long surgical scar on his chest, and his persistence to play the entire game even when his knees are swollen and painful. During the 400-kilometer round trip and the switch between two identities, what supported him was the love for football hidden in his heart.

From the township dirt field to the professional arena

"I really fell in love with football because of a particularly good coach." Liu Yuhang's thoughts returned to his childhood, "Just like many children fall in love with a class because they like a certain teacher." The teaching style of the enlightenment coach planted the seeds of football in his heart, and this seed quietly sprouted on the dirt playground of Sanjia Town, Anju District, Suining City.

In 2015, he was admitted to Chengdu University, which coincided with the school's establishment of a high-level sports team and invited a head coach who had coached the five-a-side national team. This young man who came out of the countryside came into contact with professional futsal for the first time. From youth to maturity, from unfamiliarity to tacit understanding, he not only emerged in the five-a-side field, but also broke out in the field of beach football.

The highlight moment occurred when he won the "Best Goalkeeper" in the Sichuan College Futsal League. Under the spotlight and the trophy shining, he truly felt the weight of his dream for the first time, "It turns out that I can stand on such a stage."

After graduating from college in 2021, he entered the top five leagues as he wished. Late at night after his professional debut, he wrote in his WeChat Moments: "Thank you to everyone. The dream that I once thought would be impossible to realize in my lifetime has come true today."

From the podium to the green field and back and forth

His career has just started, but Liu Yuhang made a surprising choice. In 2021, he became a physical education teacher in a primary school in Chengdu. "It has always been my dream to lead a team," he said.

However, his status as a teacher did not keep him away from the competition. Last year, he still represented the Zhejiang team in the top five leagues. "I want the children to see that teachers are constantly learning and making progress."

This summer, new challenges are coming. On the eve of the Sichuan Super League, he had just completed chest surgery - due to scar hyperplasia, a 15-centimeter wound was opened on his chest. The doctor recommended resting, but the call from the Suining team made him unable to refuse. "If the protective measures are taken well, it won't be a big problem." This understatement is behind countless painful and sleepless nights.

In the opening match of the Sichuan Super League, when the Suining team played against the Chengdu team, Liu Yuhang became the "busiest person" in the game - making more than 20 saves. Once, in order to block a one-on-one ball, he threw himself on the lawn and a bloody mark was drawn on his knee.

After the league, his injury list became longer and longer: groin strain, knee swelling, recurrence of old injuries... Before the fourth game, he had to take painkillers before he could play. When the final whistle blew, his knees were shaking with pain.

But hidden in these pains is unexpected tenderness. During the away game in Guang'an, more than 50 Suining fans came all the way, holding signs saying "Liu Yuhang, we support you" and shouting throughout the stadium.

Another late night, Liu Yuhang drove on the Chongqing-Rong Expressway. The 200-kilometer journey connects his two lives and a dream about love and persistence.

West China Metropolis Daily-cover news reporter Liu Hu, Zhou Yi, and Zhang Yidan photographed and reported