[1] He would help establish Tianjin as a regular within the top tier and would even personally win the Chinese Football Association Young Player of the Year at the end of the 1996 league season.
[2] Yu Genwei would however stay with Tianjin throughout the 1998 league season to help fight for immediate promotion which they achieved when they won the second tier.
After Yu Genwei had just won the 1996 CFA Young Player of the Year award he would go on to be promoted to the Chinese senior team and make his debut in a friendly against South Korea on 30 August 1997 in a 0–0 draw.
[3] His performance was considered good enough to be included in several squads to play in China's unsuccessful 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification campaign, however due to his drop in form and Tianjin's relegation at the end of 1997 league campaign he would be excluded from future squads until he picked up his form.
As the club's financial state improved, Yu led the team to consecutive 8th finishes in the 2022 and 2023 season.