Australia international Ryan McGowan had recently stood up against critics with regards to the quality of games in the Chinese Super League, saying that these criticisms thrown at the China top flight is based on "ignorance and elitism".

The 27-year-old McGowan is currently playing for the CSL's Henan Jianye as a defender and he had defended the league from detractors who are saying that the Chinese first division is a "league long on cash and short on quality".

Like Us on Facebook

WWOS reported that the Adelaide native is satisfied with his current stint in China and "rejects the idea it isn't good for a footballer's development".

He cited the world-class foreign strikers that he had been up against in the Far East nation practically every week - specifically naming Jackson Martinez, Graziano Pellè, Papiss Cissé, Gervinho, Ezequiel Lavezzi, Paulinho, Alex Teixeira, and Ramires - and noting that these guys do not lack in quality at all.

Recently, Shanghai SIPG broke the Chinese transfer record by signing Brazilian forward Hulk, who at the moment is still sidelined by injury. Once the former Zenit Saint Petersburg brawler is back, he will definitely be added to McGowan's list of strikers to defend.

"Look at the amount of money they're spending on foreign players and in particular strikers - players who would walk into any team in the world," said McGowan, who is one of four Socceroos currently based in China who will play against Iraq in the AFC World Cup qualifiers on Thursday, as per the Daily Telegraph.

"I was in Scotland before and I'd never face strikers of that quality, no one would in the A-League or a lot of leagues in the world," he said

Aside from McGowan, fellow defenders Trent Sainsbury and Matthew Spiranovic are presently suited up for Jiangsu Suning and Hangzhou Greentown respectively, while striker Apostolos Giannou is under contract with Guangzhou R&F.

"You get these one vs one battles and a lot of high-pressure games which is exactly what you want to be involved in. I think a lot of people don't know the Chinese league," McGowan said.

He then argued that most people will not be able to name at least five CSL teams and so judging "the standard of a league" that someone barely knows would not make sense, according to him. McGowan insisted that he enjoys playing in China and going up against some of the best forwards in the world right now.

"But they're world-class players who I wouldn't have got to play against if I'd stayed in Scotland," he added.

TagsChina Football, Chinese Super League, Chinese Super League news, Henan Jianye, Ryan McGowan, Australia