From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Chinese footballer
Liu Yunfei
(
simplified Chinese
:
?云?
;
traditional Chinese
:
劉雲飛
;
pinyin
:
Liu Yunf?i
; born 8 May 1979) is a
Chinese
international football goalkeeper who currently plays for
Shaanxi Warriors Beyond
. Internationally he played within the
2004 AFC Asian Cup
; however, at the height of his career he was disciplined by his club for his
recreational drug use
before being arrested for possessing illegal drugs, which saw him retire in 2007 at the age of only 27. On April 15, 2021, Liu decided to return to the field aged 42.
Biography
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Liu started his career playing for the
Tianjin Teda
youth team and was soon called up to the
Chinese U-23 team
, where he competed with his Tianjin teammate
Zong Lei
for the first-choice goalkeeping spot. After returning from national duty, his development soon saw him replace
Jiang Jin
as the club's first-choice goalkeeper within the
2001 Chinese Jia-A League
season after he made 19 league appearances for the club.
[1]
His breakout season saw him personally win the
Jia A
goalkeeper of the year award in 2001, while Jiang Jin decided to move to
Shanghai Zhongyuan
in 2002.
Liu was soon called up to
Chinese senior team
on February 15, 2002 by the Chinese Head coach
Bora Milutinovi?
in a friendly against
Slovenia
in a 0-0 draw.
[2]
While he missed out on the
2002 FIFA World Cup
, Liu soon went on to establish himself as his country's first-choice goalkeeper once
Arie Haan
became manager for China, and once the
2004 AFC Asian Cup
came around, Liu became the hero in the semi-final
penalty shootout
against
Iran
as China won 4-3 on penalties.
[3]
Liu transferred to top tier side
Shanghai Shenhua
in 2006, where his teammate in the national team
Yu Weiliang
was a starter goalkeeper. He started a few games, but was suspended later for discipline problems thought to be brought about by his recreational drug use. After he stopped training Liu soon became a
free agent
after the contract with Shanghai Shenhua was terminated. In March 2007, Liu was arrested for possessing illegal drugs, so he retired at only age 27.
[4]
References
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External links
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