Anecdotes about Eddie Francis

Eddie doesn’t know English, let alone French, and only knows Chinese. Eddie, who is half Chinese and half African Tanzanian, walks waddlingly and speaks softly, has to tell people repeatedly: "I am Chinese." Eddie has been passionate about football since he was a child. Seeing that her child was very talented in football, Eddie's mother sent him to a football school in Putuo District, and he was later spotted by Genbao.

Genbao commented that Eddie has a unique African flavor, good physical condition, and good flexibility, but he is too soft, his movements are not agile enough, and his speed is a bit slow. "

"He is from the Chinese team? Chinese? It doesn’t look like it! "The two officials of the AFC became suspicious when they saw Eddie with dark skin and curly hair. How to explain? Eddie was stupid. Fortunately, the coach was smart and immediately brought the birth certificate, which clearly stated It is written that Eddie is a Chinese born in Shanghai

With dark skin and curly hair, he speaks authentic Shanghainese. This is Eddie Francis, who is the first person in Chongming Island, Shanghai. He was surprised to be a mixed-race "young national player" in the Chinese national team, but he became more autistic because of the strange looks from people. "When they saw me, they shouted 'black man, black man'. I hate them calling me that. Eddie, who is half Chinese and half African Tanzanian, walks waddlingly and speaks softly, has to tell people repeatedly: "I am Chinese." "

On Eddie's bedside, there is the English word "AidiFrances" written. But Eddie said he doesn't know English, let alone French, and only knows Chinese. "I was born in Shanghai and grew up in Shanghai. "Eddie, who is often nicknamed "foreign aid" by his teammates, is indeed Chinese, which can be proved from his passport. In December 1990, Eddie was born in Shanghai. He has loved football since he was a child. Seeing his children is very... With football talent, Eddie's mother sent him to a football school in Putuo District.

A few years later, Xu Genbao's football base enrolled him. In 2000, Eddie successfully passed the exam. Becoming the first batch of young players at Genbao Football Base, the coach said: “Eddie has an African flavor, good physical condition and good flexibility. "That's why Genbao admired Eddie very much at the time. But four years later, Genbao has a new view of him: "Although Eddie has a good body, he is too soft, his movements are not agile enough, and his speed is a bit slow. "Maybe it is for this reason that in this Asian U14 group stage, Eddie only came on as a substitute in the second half of the game on the 27th. Regarding this, Eddie was also a little depressed: "Of course I hope to start and play the whole game. ! But it seems unlikely at the moment. ”

13-year-old Eddie has a strong self-esteem. What he usually avoids most is talking about his family. Because his family is a bit “different”. Although Eddie has two parents, his father is far away. He is from Africa and rarely comes to China, so Eddie has a very vague concept of "father". However, Eddie has a mother and grandmother who love him. Eddie's mother is from Shanghai and worked in a Shanghai paper factory, and she met him at that time. His father (it is said that his father was an overseas student at the time) later got married. However, his father returned to China soon after. I heard from Eddie that he went to Africa once when he was very young and didn't like it, so he came back. When asked what Africa was like, Eddie couldn't remember it, "I was too young at the time, so I can't remember it clearly. "Last year during the Spring Festival, Eddie's father came to Shanghai to visit his family, but he did not come to the base to see Eddie, but met in the city. When asked about this year's Spring Festival, Eddie said that his father did not come, and asked what the reason was. He said he didn’t know.

Since he can’t see his father for many years, Eddie has a very deep relationship with his mother. “My mother is the closest person to me in the world. Look, my mother knitted this for me. "Eddie pointed to the yellow sweater inside the coat and said. Although his father has never been to the base, Eddie's mother often comes here to visit her son. Every time she comes, she brings big and small bags, and when she leaves, she brings big and small bags. Eddie’s dirty clothes were all taken home to be washed. The coach at the base was very moved when talking about this: “It’s not easy for Eddie’s mother. It's quite hard for one person to pull this child. "As an ordinary worker, Eddie's mother had to pay him 800 yuan in living expenses every month, and his life was not comfortable.

When his mother was not around, Eddie began to learn to take care of himself. Eddie said that he has become accustomed to the life in the team: getting up early to exercise every day, training in the afternoon, and resting in the evening. “The team usually doesn’t let you play cards, you can only watch TV and play chess.

But we still have many tricks, such as playing hide-and-seek in the room, or pressing the pack, where one player is at the bottom, and then other players press on him one after another..." Only when talking about these, Eddie became more talkative. Eddie said that he is very happy at the base. The coaches and teammates are very good to him. After four years at the base, Eddie has gradually developed better living habits. He said he was a bit lazy. "The coach said this about Eddie.

People have always regarded Eddie as an "alternative". Perhaps due to family problems, Eddie was a bit withdrawn at a young age and did not like to talk. What made Eddie even more distressed was However, he often gets into trouble because of his "skin color issue", just like this time. The 14-year-old team at Genbao Base represented the Chinese team in the Asian U14 Championship, and Eddie also wore a Chinese team jersey with the Chinese flag on it. This was originally a very happy thing, but troubles followed. Before the game started, Eddie met an AFC official in the lobby. Why doesn't it look like it? "The two officials became suspicious. Fortunately, the management of Genbao Base is very detailed and keeps all the documents of the team members, including birth certificates. The coach immediately brought Eddie's birth certificate, and this "danger was saved."

But it was such a coincidence that the goalkeeper of the Guam team looked very much like Eddie that day. When he saw the goalkeeper of the Guam team walking from a distance, the coach accidentally made a joke: "Eddie, Your brother is here. "Unexpectedly, this joke made Eddie very unhappy and got angry on the spot.

After this incident, Eddie became even more autistic. He said that he hated strangers and hated going to crowds of people. In fact, the Genbao Football Base was very lively these two days: fans from far away, nearby residents, etc. Officials from all walks of life, as well as stars like Xie Hui, came, making the cold Chongming steamy. But this made little Eddie unhappy: "They always call me 'black', and I hate them calling me that." ”