Chinese President Xi Jinping has never hidden his passion for soccer and the Super League has duly risen to prominence since he took office in 2013, becoming an ever increasing attraction for South American players in particular.
Of the 84 foreign players plying their trade in China, 32 are South American — 22 of them Brazilian — as China looks to hoist itself up the rankings by investing heavily in Brazilian players, data from the Transfermarkt specialist Web site showed.
Striker Ricardo Goulart, aged just 23 and not seeking a final lucrative move in the twilight of his career, was voted the best player in the Brazilian league last season by Placar magazine.
His 15 goals for Cruzeiro earned him a debut for the national team — and also a nearly US$18 million move to Guangzhou Evergrande.
Brazilian clubs are taking the money, about US$34 million to date from Chinese buyers, as they try to extricate themselves from a collated debt burden of about 4 billion reais (US$1.2 billion), according to Transfermarkt.
“Chinese football has moved into a new phase with the injection of capital from large enterprises and even local government in clubs. It is difficult for a Brazilian team to compete with an offer from China,” said Marcos Motta, a lawyer with experience of involvement in major transfers, including that of Neymar, and also of the Asian market.
Three of the top five scorers in Brazil last season have now joined the exodus to China. Bolivian Marcelo Moreno has joined Changchun Yatai after netting 15 times for Cruzeiro last year, while Argentine Hernan Barcos has left Gremio for Tianjin Teda as they follow the trail first blazed by Goulart.
Argentine star Darmo Conca has also made the move, leaving Fluminense for Shanghai SIPG, while Brazilian international striker Diego Tardelli joined Shandong Luneng in January from Atletico Mineiro.
“Asia is signing up players with experience and China has transformed itself into a new El Dorado,” Brazil coach Dunga said. “This is the way things are today with football and we must adapt.”
In heading for Shandong Luneng, Tardelli teamed up again with Brazilian coach Cuca, who led Mineiro to the Copa Libertadores in 2013.
Shandong boast further Brazilians in Junior Urso and Aloisio, and an Argentine in the shape of Walter Montillo.
“The name Brazil resonates in China and this makes the signing of any Brazilian player, or someone who has played there such as Conca, more popular,” said Motta, who helped to draw up Conca’s contract.
Conca, who played for Guangzhou Evergrande between 2011 and 2013, was an early South American pioneer in China and has earned himself a top drawer salary of about US$7 million a season.
For Erich Beting, director of the Maquina do Esporte Web portal, the exodus to Asia is a result of the South American clubs not having the structures in place to keep a hold of their talented players.
“Sometimes the club will only think of the on-field situation and forget about creating a project whereby the player will not want to move on,” Beting said.
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