The interview took place in a hotel conference room in Paris.
The interview team sent by CCTV-5 consists of six people - host Liu Jianhong, two cameramen, a sound engineer, a lighting engineer, and a producer.
When Zhang Kuang walked into the conference room, Liu Jianhong was confirming the camera location with the cameraman. Seeing Zhang Kuang come in, he put down the manuscript in his hand and stood up.
"Zhang Kuang!" Liu Jianhong stretched out his hand, with a complicated expression on his face - some appreciation, some curiosity, and a hint of indescribable emotion, "I finally see you."
"Hello, Teacher Liu." Zhang Kuang held his hand and said, "Long time to see you."
"You are taller and stronger than you look on TV." He looked Zhang Kuang up and down, "And you are indeed handsome."
"Teacher Liu, please stop praising me, I'm going to drift off."
"Float, you're qualified. Come, sit down, take a look at our interview transcript first, and mark the ones you don't want to answer."
The two exchanged pleasantries for a few words, and then sat down in their respective seats. Zhang Kuang sat on a single sofa, and Liu Jianhong sat opposite him, with a coffee table in between. The cameraman adjusted the camera position, the lighting engineer set the light, and the sound engineer clamped the microphone.
Zhang Kuang glanced at the interview transcript and smiled.
"Teacher Liu, your interviews are very conservative. They only ask positive questions, unlike the reporters here at Europe who are all sharp.
It's okay, I can answer any question, as long as you dare to broadcast it, I dare to say it."
"Ah? Really?" Liu Jianhong was particularly surprised.
"Of course it's true. I can answer any question."
"Okay, just wait a moment and I'll reorganize the question."
Liu Jianhong was also excited. I have never encountered such an interview subject before, and he dared to ignore any questions.
He and his assistants sorted out the new interview script, and Zhang Kuang, under the guidance of the photographer, took a few photos, posing in various poses.
About ten minutes later, Liu Jianhong came back with a new interview script.
"Would you like to take a look?"
"No, just come directly and ask whatever you want."
"Okay, let's get ready to start." Liu Jianhong gestured to the producer.
The producer made an "OK" gesture.
Liu Jianhong faced the camera and began his opening remarks.
"Viewers, welcome to this episode of "Football Night". Today we have a special guest - he is the Ligue 1 champion, he is the Ligue 1 Golden Boot winner, and he is the most successful overseas player in the history of our China football."
He paused.
"He is Zhang Kuang."
The camera cuts to Zhang Kuang.
Zhang Kuang faced the camera and nodded slightly. "Hello everyone, I am China, registered as Player Zhang Kuang."
Liu Jianhong opened his notebook.
"Zhang Kuang, first of all, congratulations on winning the Ligue 1 championship. This is the first time that China player has won the league championship in the five major leagues. Is there anything you want to say to the domestic fans?"
"Thank you fans and friends for your support." Zhang Kuang said, "Without your attention and support, I might not be so relaxed. This championship is also given to you."
"You said before on Weibo that you will not return to the national team. Many fans are very sad because of this. They think you are unpatriotic. How do you respond to this statement?"
Zhang Kuang's expression did not change, he was just organizing his words to prepare an answer.
"If someone says that I am not patriotic, I seriously disagree. I am very patriotic, and I also love China football. I saw someone on the Internet saying that only those with insufficient strength need to give gifts to join the national team, so they said that I only entered because of lack of strength, which means that I am also a bad guy, and don't say that the national team is bad. I seriously disagree with this statement..."
(Zhang Kuang said a lot of things that made Liu Jianhong and the producer smile bitterly and shake their heads. These cannot be broadcast, but it does not stop Zhang Kuang from saying no. It will be edited later.)
Liu Jianhong nodded and continued to ask.
"It only took you half a season in Auxerre to win the Ligue 1 championship and the Golden Boot. How did you do it? How did you gain a foothold in the five major leagues?"
Zhang Kuang looked at the camera and said something that no one expected.
"The so-called trouble of not being able to stand in the five major leagues is the lack of firepower. If you are strong enough, you can't be unable to stand in the five major leagues."
Liu Jianhong was stunned for a moment.
"Insufficient firepower?"
"Yes." Zhang Kuang said, "It's just like on the battlefield. If you have enough firepower, you can crush the enemy. If you don't have enough firepower, you can only die in battle, cower or become a prisoner, and accept defeat.
You are not strong enough, so you cannot stand firm. If you are strong enough, you can stand firm. It is that simple. Cultural differences, language barriers, tactical adaptations - these are all excuses.
If you score a goal, the coach will use you. If you don't understand the language, he will ask a translator to help you. If you keep scoring goals, the coach will not dare to use you, and the club president will come to treat you to dinner.
This is how football is, strength speaks for itself. If you have strength, it doesn't matter whether you are in the top five leagues or the top ten leagues, you will still get a draw."
Liu Jianhong: "Then where does your strength come from? Talent? Training?"
"Both." Zhang Kuang said, "I have talent and I also train. Although many people say that my training volume is not enough, the quality of my training is very high. I know what I should practice and what I should not practice.
I won't waste time on ineffective training, but I mainly rely on talent. I am a talented player, so some colleagues should not learn my bad habits. If you don't have talent, just train hard."
"Your private life has been criticized." Liu Jianhong's tone became cautious, "Many fans are worried that you will affect your status because of women. You don't seem to care about this problem?"
"I have to mention this problem dozens of times a day by reporters and fans. For most players, this is a very bad problem, but for me, it is not."