On January 28, Shanghai Shenhua Football Club officially announced the addition of three new players to the club, Gao Tianyi, Andre Luiz and Wilson Manafa.
Gao Tianyi, born on July 1, 1998 in Dalian, is a 185cm tall midfielder. He initially started his career at Hangzhou Greentown, and the Catalan Dame Youth Camp in Spain. In the 2016 season, Gao Tianyi returned to China to join Shenzhen, and in the 2017 season, he moved to Jiangsu Suning, where he made his debut in the Chinese Super League on March 5 of the same year (in the first round of the league against Shenhua). In his four seasons with Jiangsu Suning, Gao Tianyi made 55 appearances, scoring one goal and helping the team win the 2020 Chinese Super League title. In the 2021 season, Gao Tianyi joined Beijing Guoan, for whom he made 74 appearances over the past three seasons, scoring 4 goals and dishing out 14 assists.Gao Tianyi made his China national team debut on March 24, 2022, in the World Cup Asian qualifying round of 12 match between China and Saudi Arabia, and represented the China Asian Games team at the 2023 Asian Games in Hangzhou, making 3 starts , playing a total of 270 minutes and contributing 1 goal and 2 assists.
Andre Luiz is a Brazilian born on March 9, 1994 . He is 184 cm tall and plays as a Striker. Luiz began his career in the youth ranks of Brazilian soccer club Botafogo. He joined Brazilian club Figueirense F.C. in June 2017, making 26 appearances and scoring 5 goals.In August 2018, he moved to Portuguese Superliga club Chaves F.C., making a total of 86 appearances for the team and scoring 39 goals.In October 2020, he joined Portuguese Superliga club Moreira Humanos F.C., making a total of 103 appearances for the team and scoring 34 goals so far.
Wilson Manafa was born on July 23, 1994 in Guinea-Bissau and holds dual citizenship of Portugal and Guinea-Bissau. He stands at a height of 175cm and can play in a number of positions on the pitch, including right and left wing-back and wing-forward. Manafa started his career playing for Portuguese club Oliveira de Byelorussia, before joining the youth program of traditional Portuguese Premier League powerhouse Sporting Portugal (formerly Sporting Lisbon) at the age of 18, and moving to Portuguese Liga 1 side Beira-Mar for the 2014/2015 season.In July 2016, Manafa was signed by then-Liga 1 side Portimão Manuel, where he made 39 appearances that season, scoring three goals, helping the team to win the Liga MX title and return to the Portuguese Premier League, where he hadn't played in years. Over the next two seasons, Manafa made a total of 37 appearances, scoring two goals and dishing out six assists to help Portimão establish themselves in the Portuguese Superliga. With his outstanding performances, Manafa moved to join Portuguese Premier League giants Porto in January 2019, where he amassed 130 appearances for the team, scoring 2 goals and assisting 6 times. In his five years with Porto, Manafa helped the team win two Portuguese Superliga titles, three Portuguese Cups, one Portuguese League Cup, and one Portuguese Super Cup.In August 2023, Manafa joined La Liga's Granada F.C., where he has so far made five appearances for the team, contributing one assist.
