Wang Baoshan

While Wang Baoshan was born in Pingyi, Shandong his family would move to Baoji in Shaanxi to see him graduate to the senior team of the Shaanxi Province football club by the 1980 Chinese league season. Unfortunately for Wang in his debut season he was part of the squad that came bottom of the league and his club were relegated at the end of the campaign. His time within the second tier would see him establish himself within the team and by the 1985 league season he would help aid Shaanxi win promotion back into the top tier, which soon caught the attention of the Chinese national team. With the national team he would play within the 1988 AFC Asian Cup and was part of the team that came fourth within the tournament. When he returned to club football he would move to Japan and joined Otsuka Pharmaceutical before he retired.

Wang Baoshan got his break in club management with second-tier football club Foshan Fosti in the 1995 league season and helped guide the club to a fifth-place finish. For the next several seasons he would guide the club to mid-table mediocrity until the club were taken over by Xiamen Yuanhua at the beginning of the 1998 league season and was subsequently released by the club. Wang wouldn't have to wait long for a new job and would take on the position of general manager for another second-tier club Yunnan Hongta, however he would quickly also serve as the club's manager for one season before he would settle on becoming the team's youth team manager for the next two seasons. His work with the youth team would quickly draw the attentions of the China U-20 team and he would lead them into the 2002 AFC Youth Championship where the team finished in a disappointing sixth-place finish. After the tournament the Chinese Football Association would decide not to renew his contract and Wang would join another second-tier football club Guangdong Xiongying in the 2003 league season and guide the team to a mid-table position. The following season saw the club decide to move to Shenzhen and rename themselves Shenzhen Kejian, Wang would again guide the club to another mid-table position, however the club was severely in debt and dissolved at the end of the 2004 league season. Wang would join another second-tier football club in Jiangsu Sainty, however his time with them only lasted one…