HONG KONG (Reuters) - Tianjin Quanjian midfielder Axel Witsel knows he is not facing the same kind of quality opposition as his Belgian compatriots competing in European leagues and is therefore putting in extra hours on the training ground to prepare for the World Cup.
Witsel moved to the Chinese Super League side from Zenit St Petersburg in January 2017 after being linked with a host of clubs around Europe and was instrumental in the club’s third-place finish in their first season in the league.
And while Tianjin have also been playing in this year’s Asian Champions League, the 29-year-old knows there is a huge gulf in quality compared to English and German football.
“You just need to stay fit if you still have the ambition to play for your country, and this is my ambition so I keep training hard,” he told Reuters.
“I make some exercises after training, physically, to stay fit.
“After that, when I go back I adapt myself to the level of our national team because it’s 10 times more than here, even in training.
“I did this before when I was in Russia. The championship in Russia is better than in China, but it’s not England or Germany so I adapt myself for this.
“And now I’m doing the same.”
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