Updated at 11.46
SHANGHAI SIPG RECRUIT Oscar believes the Chinese Super League could eventually compete with the Premier League if more star names make the move to Asia.
Oscar made the record-breaking €60 million switch from Premier League leaders Chelsea to SIPG, linking up with head coach Andre Villas-Boas and fellow Brazilian Hulk.
The 25-year-old Brazil international, who scored in his first appearance in a friendly win over Al Batin, arrives at a time when Carlos Tevez, Axel Witsel, Ramires, Alex Teixeira, Ezequiel Lavezzi, John Obi Mikel, Graziano Pelle, Burak Yilmaz, Paulinho, Renato Augusto, Fredy Guarin and Jackson Martinez all call China home.
And Oscar feels the lucrative CSL will only get better with further investment.
If they continue in this way, maybe yes, because they have lots of good projects,” Oscar told Sky Sports.
“Of course the Premier League (has higher) level of players in the world, but the Chinese guys are very good. They help the new players a lot, and I hope they continue this because I come to help.
The transfer was good for me, good for Chelsea, good for Shanghai, and I’m so happy to come to the Chinese Super League.
“I think the Chinese clubs (spend) a lot of money for the players to go to China, to make the league stronger. They made me an offer and I’m very happy to come.”
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It’ll be good for Ireland if it does. Means more Irish players will be playing in the premier league.
He says, as he wipes his arse with a £100 note!
No it can’t.
It absolutely can – not right now – but if the money men keep backing
It, in perhaps 5-10
Years time. Lets be honest most of the top players in the prem right now (other than those from these isles) are there for money and to keep playing at a standard that will allow them to play internationally….. they dont have any more of a connection to West Ham/stoke than they do to shanghai – nor
Should they. They’re is no reason why more and more of them won’t go to china – as the wages get higher and higher. As they do the quality in the prem will slowly drop – more lads who now are only at championship level will have to be brought up to prem.
If the money stays in it for 5+ more years, the league could be very interesting – and begin to rival the prem for the Asian spend.
This assumes there aren’t rules in china about how many Chinese players have to play – if there are (and in a way to help Chinese football develop there should be), then the league will take a lot longer to get to top standard.
@Augustus hoop: as with everything, the money will go where the market is. And the market potential in China is exponentially bigger than England.
“These isles” because they have no interest in money lol
More because people from these isles seem less likely to be willing to go places that don’t speak English (some notable exceptions – Robbie, Sheridan, Roy o’donovan and o’dea)
@Augustus hoop: There are rules limiting non Chinese players. You can only have four foreigners plus one AFC player in your squad and each team can have only 3+1 foreigners on the pitch at any time. China currently sit bottom of their 6 team WC qualification group after 5 games and have already lost to Syria and Uzbekistan. So the native quality is severely lacking. The Chinese Super League are decades and decades off competing with even South American leagues in terms of overall quality.
It’s also never mentioned that it’s a one team league; Guangzhou have won the last 6 titles and despite Beijing running them close in 2014 and Shanghai pushing them in 2015, it was business as usual last year and they cruised to the title. Guangzhou also won two AFC champions leagues in the same period while no other Chinese team has even made the semi’ finals in the modern era. It remains to be seen if any other Chinese team can successfully balance their local and international recruitment.
Interesting – cheers.
But could he do it on a rainy night in Guangzhou?
This Chinese league is the same as the MLS in the 70′s. Making big claim and buying a handful of good player. It will eventually blow over.