The success of last year's World Cup in Qatar has made Qatari soccer all the rage over Middle Eastern owner Saudi Arabia. In a bid to regain the number one spot in Middle Eastern soccer, the Saudi Arabian consortium has invested heavily this year in bringing in many popular stars from Europe's top five leagues.
Jeddah Nationals, the giants club of the Saudi League, is one of the key training targets of the Saudi Football Association. Currently, Jeddah Nationals have brought in three superstars from the English Premier League, Brazilian striker Firmino from Liverpool, Algerian winger Riyad Mahrez from Manchester City and French winger St. Maximin from Newcastle.
The addition of these three big names has undoubtedly boosted Jeddah National's frontcourt considerably, and they are seen as one of the favorites to win the Saudi League next season.
With the addition of these big names from the Euroleague, some of Jeddah Nationals' players have had to leave the team, including Malcolm Malcolm, the golden boot of last season's Super League, who joined just earlier this year.
In the 2021 season, Malcolm moved from Hebei to Chinese First Division side Wuhan Three Town. In his first season with the team, he scored 11 goals and helped Wuhan Three Town to overtake the Chinese First Division title.
Last season, Malcolm became the centerpiece of Wuhan Three Town's attack up front. The Brazilian senior center forward not only became the pivot of Three Town's front court, but also kept scoring goals in the league thanks to top Chinese Super League passers like Stancho. Malcolm scored 27 goals in 26 rounds of the league, becoming the deserved top scorer of the Chinese Super League.
After helping Wuhan Three Town win the Chinese Super League title, Malcolm was surprisingly sold by the club to Jeddah Citizens for a whopping €4.5 million earlier this year. Perhaps he couldn't adapt to the pace of the Saudi game, or enjoyed the good life in Saudi Arabia too much. After joining Jeddah Citizens, Malcolm failed to show his strength as a top scorer. Last season, he only played one game for Jeddah Citizens and scored one goal before being completely discarded by coach Mosimani.
With the addition of Firmino, Malcolm has completely lost his place in the team, which has upset Malcolm who has been very poor in the Saudi League. According to recent news in the Saudi sports media, Jeddah National Club intends to loan Malcom back to the Chinese Super League.
From the current situation, Malcolm is unlikely to return to Wuhan Three Town. Sanzhen changed their head coach last month, and the new coach, Gao Mian, doesn't like to use high-flying tactics. The addition of Malcolm would not mean much to him.
Shanghai Harbour, this season's Chinese Super League leaders, are more suited to Malcolm. In Spanish manager Javier's tactical system, it is essential for a high center forward to give enough pressure to the opponent in front of the field, while Austrian center forward Pinko is not suitable for Javier's tactical system, which has become the team's substitute.
If you can sign Malcolm, then Hong Kong's forward line will have absolute control of the air, fully comparable to Shandong Taishan, adding heavy weight to win the Chinese Super League title this season...
