Seongnam's three consecutive wins: the meticulousness and dedication behind their standout performance

Nan Nan reporting from Dingnan, Jiangxi "I think they are very serious; regardless of the opponent’s strength, the coach constantly gives tactical instructions to the players on the field," said Luo Li, translator for Seongnam FC U15. "Even though I don’t completely grasp the specifics of these tactics, I can hear the coach giving orders throughout the match."

On the third day of the inaugural "462 Cup" Korea-China Youth Football Elite Challenge, Seongnam FC U15 defeated the Guizhou Football Association representative team with a commanding 5-1 score, securing their third consecutive victory—all by large margins. After Incheon United narrowly won in a penalty shootout despite leading by three goals in regular time against Guangzhou Evergrande, Seongnam became the first team in this Korea-China challenge to win all three matches within regular time. While HSFA Hwaseong faced the toughest schedule among Korean teams in the competition, Seongnam clearly had the luckiest draw, facing relatively weaker teams in the first three rounds: Dingnan Dream, Ganzhou Youth Training Center, and Guizhou FA.

However, in Luo Li’s view, Seongnam doesn’t seem overly concerned with the scorelines; their focus is more on how players can grow better through the matches. Although there is a clear gap in strength between Seongnam and the three Chinese teams they faced, the Chinese sides did not give up immediately. Dingnan Dream held out for 40 minutes before conceding, and Guizhou became the first Chinese team to score against Seongnam, even narrowing the score to 1-2 at one point.

Across the three games, one pattern caught Luo Li’s attention: Seongnam’s opponents almost always collapsed quickly after conceding a goal. In the first match, Dingnan Dream conceded during stoppage time of the first half and then quickly allowed multiple goals early in the second half. In the second match, Ganzhou also saw the score gap widen rapidly after conceding. Today, Guizhou, after pulling the score to 1-2, conceded two more goals within 15 minutes.

Luo Li, who previously didn’t know much about football, asked Seongnam’s head coach Zhao Dongxi why this happens. Zhao explained that this is normal in youth matches; children aged fourteen or fifteen don’t have very strong mental resilience. His own team sometimes experiences this too. Therefore, during regular training, they create scenarios where players are behind to help improve their mental toughness and teach them how to regain control of the game when trailing.

Beyond the pitch, the attention to detail from Seongnam off the field also impressed Luo Li and highlighted differences between the Chinese and Korean teams. Seongnam almost daily provides extra meals after matches, with hamburgers and pizza being the children’s favorites. According to Zhao Dongxi’s philosophy, these foods play an important role in helping the kids recover during intense competitions. One of Luo Li’s daily tasks is accompanying the coaching staff to buy snacks. In her opinion, Seongnam is very generous to their players, supplying energy bars, bananas, sports drinks, and other supplements without fail. The professional team’s support system left a strong impression on Luo Li.