Former Chelsea star is Oscar is leaving China after eight years (Image: VCG via Getty Images)
Oscar has bid an emotional goodbye to China following the final game of his lucrative stint with Shanghai Port. The former Chelsea midfielder was part of the contingent of players who migrated eastwards at the height of the Chinese Super League’s financial powers in the mid-to-late 2010s.
He made the switch to Shanghai Port, formerly known as Shanghai SIPG in January 2017, mid-way through Chelsea’s Premier League title-winning campaign. The club coughed up £60million to secure his services before reportedly setting him on a whopping £400,000 weekly wage.
The Brazilian, now 33, is believed to have pocketed a staggering £175million in earnings throughout his near-eight-year spell in south China. At Shanghai, he notched 248 appearances and 77 goals, making him the second-highest scorer in the club’s history.
It was undoubtedly the sizeable paychecks that enticed Oscar, along with fellow Brazilian luminaries like Hulk, Robinho, Ramires, and Paulinho, into China’s football arena. However, unlike the others, Oscar stuck around after the division’s spending was curbed.
He was pivotal in clinching three Chinese Super League titles in 2018, 2023, and 2024, the FA Super Cup in 2019, and this year’s Chinese FA Cup triumph for his team. His heartfelt bond with the club and supporters was on display post-match on Tuesday when, after his last game for Shanghai, an emotional Oscar couldn’t hold back tears while fans in the stands passionately pleaded with him, chanting “Oscar stay”.
With his contract expiring at the end of the year, the midfield maestro has his sights set on a return to his homeland to be with family. A potential return to former club Internacional is on the cards, with the Brazilian club’s manager Eduardo Coudet openly confessing: “Our only goal, the player we are going to try moving forward, is Oscar.”
A tearful Oscar waving goodbye to the fans after his final game for Shanghai Port (Image: )
He added: “I want to bring in Oscar. I’ve already spoken to his manager, he can’t stand me anymore. I want Oscar. The board ask me not to talk, but sometimes I talk too much.”
Clubs in Europe are also monitoring the situation, and could offer Oscar the chance to return to the continent in January. But if the former Blues star’s comments back in September are anything to go by, a return to Brazil sounds likliest.
“I love Shanghai, but it’s just too far away from home for us. We can’t stay here forever,” he said. “My mum is getting older, my sisters are having babies. We want to be closer to home.
Oscar won four major honours at Chelsea, including two Premier League titles (Image: Getty)
“Wherever I go, it won’t be like here. There’s no way to change that. The quality of life in China is unique in the world. I’ve never seen anything like it in Europe.
“My kids go to school and come back home by bus without worrying about safety. We can go out as much as we want at 2am or 3am, and go anywhere and nothing will happen. There are no drugs here. It’s something from another world. Only those who are here, living here, understand how it feels.”
Oscar signed with Chelsea from Internacional in 2012 for £25 million, just weeks after the club’s historic Champions League triumph. He made an immediate impact, announcing his arrival with a stunning goal against Juventus on his first start. In his debut season, he featuring in a whopping 64 matches across all competitions and lifted the Europa League.
He stayed at Stamford Bridge for a further three-and-half years, and made over 200 appearances for the Blues, scoring 38 goals. He also won the Premier League and the League Cup during the 2014/15 season.
Source: https://www.express.co.uk/sport/football/1985033/Chelsea-Oscar-Shanghai-Port-Chinese-Super-League