Five Goals and Three Assists Still Not Enough for Asian Games Squad: The Two Real Obstacles Behind Buniamin’s Omission

On the night of September 6, Yunnan Yukun defeated Liaoning Tieren 5-0, with 18-year-old Buniamin scoring and assisting. He has now made 17 Chinese Super League appearances this season, scoring five goals and providing three assists.

One day later, the final 23-man U23 men's football squad for the Nagoya Asian Games was announced, and Buniamin was not included.

On September 4, an analysis of the squad released by Football News through Zhiboba stated clearly that, apart from the three over-age players, the 20 U23 players showed a clear divide: some were young players who had firmly secured starting roles in their leagues and were familiar with the five-defender tactical framework; others had limited league appearances but had long been part of U23 national team training camps.

In the squad finalized by head coach Antonio, half of the U23 players had already become starters at their clubs. They completed two national team training camps, and some earned call-ups to the senior national team through consistent league performances.

The three over-age slots were all used: Wu Xi, Zhu Chenjie and Zhang Yuning formed the central spine of midfield, defense and attack respectively.

According to an official notice from the Chinese Football Association, the team gathered in Dalian on the afternoon of September 7 to begin the final training camp before the Asian Games. The first group match against North Korea was on September 16, leaving fewer than 10 days from the gathering date.

The team was expected to depart for the Japanese venue as early as September 11, leaving a very limited window for domestic joint training.

Selection for a major tournament cannot be based only on a player's recent league explosion. With such a short preparation period, fully integrating a new player who has barely trained with the team into the entire attacking and defensive system carries too much risk.

A look at Buniamin’s performance curve reveals where the issue lies.

In this Chinese Super League season, he has played 17 matches, started nine times and accumulated 795 minutes. His five goals and three assists all came during one period—since his first start in the 17th CSL round, he has scored five goals and provided three assists in the last 10 league matches, plus one assist in the FA Cup.

Nano Sports statistics provide more details: 30 successful dribbles from 51 attempts and 64 successful one-on-one battles from 132 attempts. His efficiency was indeed high, and his burst of form was impressive.

However, Football News pointed out directly that his consistent high-level period was still insufficient and that he had not spent enough time training with the U23 national team.

In the first half of the season, he only made sporadic appearances, lacked sustained output and had no opportunity to prove himself in national team camps. His second-half performances were genuinely impressive, but a continental tournament squad is not selected based on how hot a player has been in the last month; it focuses on stability proven over the past year.

Antonio’s system is the same framework that helped the U23 team finish second at the U23 Asian Cup earlier this year.

No player in the squad was registered as a specialist pure winger. All wide attacking and defensive duties are handled by players such as Hu Hetao, Mutallifu, Wang Yudong and Baihelamu, who respectively play as full-back, attacking midfielder, second striker and center forward.

Buniamin is a typical wide attacking player. Playing him as a wing-back? He would struggle to recover defensively. Moving him to the frontline? He would overlap in role with Wang Yudong, Baihelamu, Xiang Yuwang and Zhang Yuning.

This is not a question of ability, but one of tactical fit.

Buniamin was not the only player left out.

Shanghai Port’s Li Xinxiang, who has scored five goals and provided two assists this season, also failed to make the final squad. His situation was highly similar to Buniamin’s—he was not part of Antonio’s core group built over three years, and the cost of integration was considered too high.

Wumiti Jiang’s situation was even more unfortunate. He was originally included in the 24-player training squad, but suffered a traffic accident before the Asian Games call-up. His physical recovery was not sufficient for tournament participation, and he was ultimately replaced at the last moment by Shandong Taishan’s Shi Songchen.

Du Yuezhen, Zhang Zhixiong, Bao Shengxin, Bao Shimeng and Zhang Aihui, other regulars previously trained by Antonio, were also outside the squad. With the central spine positions occupied by three over-age players, younger players in the same positions naturally lost selection opportunities.

China were drawn into Group B, with North Korea, Iran and the UAE as opponents.

China will face North Korea at 18:00 on September 16, Iran at 13:00 on September 20, and the UAE at 13:30 on September 23. The top two teams in the group will advance to the quarterfinals.

The three opponents have different styles and strong physicality. Under this tournament format, the coaching staff’s preference for players familiar with the tactical system and tested through multiple training camps is a rational decision, not a failure to judge players correctly.

Buniamin has only played 17 CSL matches this season, including nine starts. He had not yet entered the U23 national team training system, so he had no opportunity to be tested within Antonio’s setup.

Comparing Buniamin with the U23 attacking players selected in the squad:

Buniamin: 17 CSL matches, nine starts, five goals and three assists, zero U23 national team training camps.

Wang Yudong, Baihelamu, Xiang Yuwang and Mutallifu: part of the U23 Asian Cup runner-up squad earlier this year and long involved in Antonio’s system.

Kuai Jiwen: eight league appearances this season with one goal and one assist, selected for the squad.

Statistics are not the only measure. Facing a joint training window of fewer than 10 days, “choose the familiar over the unfamiliar” was a rational choice by the coaching staff.

Buniamin is 18 years old and delivered five goals and three assists in his debut CSL season, with a dribble success rate of 58.8%. Another Football News analysis noted that he has a strong possibility of moving up early into the future Olympic team.

Squads for continental tournaments have never been a simple reflection of league statistics.