Blues over Chinese takeaway

Donald Trump may be attempting to diminish the impact of China internationally although it is not a policy that footballers appear to concur with.

The sums paid by Chinese clubs have been steadily increasing with first Ramires leaving for £20m to JS Suning before the club doubled the figure for Axel Witsel only to be eclipsed by SIPG who acquired Hulk. 

Yet up until the current transfer window the feeling has been that clubs across Europe have been able to cash in on slightly older or fringe players by selling to China, although with the latest Chelsea transfer there is a sense that the game has changed.

Shanghai Shenhua’s pursuit of Carlos Tevez had appeared to fall in line with Chinese clubs’ regular tactic of targeting big-name players towards the end of their respective careers. Yet Oscar, for all that he has become a fringe player at Chelsea, is still only 25, with his best years potentially ahead of him.

While the mind-boggling fee has been welcomed by Chelsea there is a concern that the riches in East Asia may drain the Premier League of its best talent. Statistics demonstrate that it is not just those nearing the end of their careers that are cashing in.

Oscar is 25 while nine of the top ten most expensive signings are aged under 30.  Perhaps the money on offer is so high that players feel that they can take a career hiatus at international level. 

That may have to be the case for Europeans where even travelling outside of their home country brings the end to their international hopes although the South American countries tend to show greater loyalty.

Even Christiano Ronaldo has received a tentative offer. The Portuguese star, who was named The Best FIFA Men’s Player 2016 on Monday, reportedly received a €100 milliona-year contract offer from an unnamed Chinese team. 

Apparently, the four-time Ballon D’Or winner has insisted he is happy in Madrid although would not rule out playing in the Far East at some stage in his career. Driven by soccer-loving President Xi Jinping, China has also been using its financial might to invest in prestigious overseas clubs like Inter Milan in Italy.

If English Premier League clubs are complaining then it is a little rich as they have long held the cheque book in the European market, with the exception of the top two teams in Spain and Germany. 

Yet I don’t see that as being a bad thing for the UK. China will simply syphon off those players more interested in money than winning meaningful trophies. In Spain and Portugal, for example, there has been an uneven distribution of television revenues and it has been the Premier League cash that has sustained lower-end sides in these leagues.

While Chelsea welcomed the vast sum paid for Oscar they are apparently less enamoured with the latest moves for Diego Costa.  The Spaniard, in common with an increasing number of leading Premier League players, has been the subject of a £30m per year offer from China and there is the fear at his club that his advisers could be using it to lever him away.

It is a shame for Chelsea if Costa’s head has been ‘turned’ by the lure of the lucre as he has been an integral part of their recent surge to the top of the table, although players being distracted by potential bigmoney moves is nothing new.

Indeed, West Ham United are facing similar problems with Payet, while others have been known to force through a move by going on strike.  “The Chinese market is a danger for all,” said Conte, manager of the Blues, “not only for Chelsea, but all the teams in the world.

But I think we must concentrate on our work, not think that in China there is a lot of money and they can arrive to take the players there.” “England has the best league in the world if you have ambition to test yourself against the other teams with this reality. To play in this league is a great opportunity and an honour.”

It is not just the transfer fees that have reached near record proportions as salaries in China are already topping the global scale. Carlos Tevez became the world’s highest-paid player after joining Shanghai Shenhua, where he will reportedly earn a whopping €40 million a year, reportedly twice as much as the world’s best player!   

Tevez replaced David Beckham’s previous world record deal – the former Manchester United and Real Madrid star pocketed €30 million a year during his time at Paris Saint-Germain.

Arsenal have been alarmed at the possibility that Hebei China Fortune could offer Alexis Sánchez £400,000 a week to reject a new contract at the Emirates Stadium while the same team have reportedly been rejected by James Rodriguez despite offering him a €30m-a-year salary, nearly 10-times the figure he is currently paid by Real Madrid.

Coaches are also cashing in with Manuel Pellegrini, Andre Villas-Boas and Marcello Lippi all benefitting. Unsurprisingly, agents are manipulating the situation with Jorge Mendes one of the quickest to maximise revenues, either with the transfers directly or by generating rumours that lead to enhanced contracts for those who remain!

China, however, will tighten rules over the number of overseas players able to appear in domestic games, amid concerns that clubs have been over-spending on foreign talent. Clubs in the country’s top leagues would be limited to fielding a maximum of three foreign players per game for the 2017 season, down from the current five, China’s Football Association said in a statement on Monday.

Chinese officials have said clubs should impose salary caps and create special funds to develop home-grown talent. Teams can currently have three foreign players plus one Asian player on the field at any one time, a system referred to as the ‘3+1’ rule.

A fifth foreign player can be used as a substitute as long as the ‘3+1’ rule is maintained. Clubs would still be able to register five foreign players in their overall squad, the association said, but the rule would mean not all could be used in any one game, a potential disincentive to loading a squad with international imports.

The association said in the statement that teams would also have to include two younger domestic players born in or after 1994 in their match day squad, of whom one would have to start the game.

“The FA will roll out a series of measures to regulate the operation and management of clubs in terms of irrational investment, and high transfer fees and wages for domestic and international players,” the body said, referring to clubs in the top Chinese Super League and China League One.

The acid test will be when the biggest clubs outside China start to lose players against their wishes.  That will demonstrate the real shift in power. Paul Pogba’s transfer of €105 million to Manchester United is the current record.  Trump that!