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BEIJING, Oct. 14 (Xinhua) -- Chinese soccer has found out a living example of how important the youth development is to the sport.
Belgium instead of any traditional soccer giants will move to top of the FIFA rankings next week, only the 8th team to achieve the feat, after beating Israel 3-1 in their last European Championship qualifier on Tuesday.
"HISTORIC MOMENT: FIRST PLACE ON THE FIFA RANKING!" Belgian national team exclaimed on Twitter.
It seemed an unlikely run for the Red Devils who rocketed from 71st place in 2007 past powerhouses Germany and Argentina over the past weekend to the top spot.
Some Chinese media and fans, who have closely followed the European Championship qualifying, believe that Belgium provides the best example for Chinese soccer.
"In the first decade of the 21st century, Belgian soccer hit the rock bottom. But now they are as competitive as traditional powerhouses like Germany and Argentina," said an article on Sina.com on Wednesday.
"Belgium's rapid progress has everything to do with their emphasis on youth development. We should study and learn from their experiences," it said.
Belgian soccer has undergone a revolution in recent years as former technical director Michel Sablon mapped out a radical blueprint for youth development in 2006.
It bore fruit when Belgium qualified for last year's World Cup finals in Brazil after a 12-year hiatus and were only stopped by Argentina 1-0 in the quarterfinals.
"Belgium has drawn lessons from European neighbors Spain and the Netherlands on youth development and made a lot of efforts in cultivating the young players," an article pointed out Belgium's key to success on Dongqiudi.com, a website for soccer news, comments and analysis.
For China, going that far in the World Cup will be a long-term goal, and the team are now seeking to qualify for their first World Cup finals since 2002.
