When Michael Owen carried a shoulder pole to hand over lychees to players on Sunday at the Yuexiushan Stadium in Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong province, cheers echoed throughout the stadium.

After participating in a business promotional event held by a local automobile manufacturer, the former English international made an appearance at the stadium for a third-round match of the Guangdong City Football Super League. He performed the ceremonial kickoff for the match between the Guangzhou and Maoming teams and later joined a gift exchange ceremony during halftime.

The Guangzhou team presented shrimp dumplings, and the Maoming team gave lychees in return.

Speaking about the Guangdong soccer league commonly known as Yuechao, which is composed of grassroots and amateur players, Owen said the enthusiasm and vitality shown by Chinese soccer was very impressive. "I've heard they're amateur players, but I think they look quite professional," he said.

At the age of 17, Owen won the Premier League Golden Boot, making him the youngest recipient in league history.

"The Premier League is a very high-standard competition, and I believe China will have players who can reach that level in the future," he said.