Recently, a heavy news has exploded in the soccer circle that the former Guangzhou soccer giant, Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Group, is expected to make a comeback and perhaps take over Guangzhou City, another Chinese Super League powerhouse in Guangzhou. The news instantly triggered widespread concern among Guangzhou fans about the team's future.
It is reported that the Guangzhou Municipal Government has set up a special team responsible for coordinating the equity change of the two Guangzhou soccer clubs. The team consists of leaders from the Municipal Sports Bureau and other relevant departments, and is directly headed by the municipal government leaders themselves. Their first task is to find a willingness to take over the business, and Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Group is one of them. Looking back, Guangzhou Pharmaceuticals Group was the biggest sponsor of the Guangzhou team from 2006 to 2009, witnessing the team leap from the First Division to the Chinese Super League, realizing the long-cherished wish of Guangzhou fans. However, the Guangzhou team suffered from the 2009 match-fixing scandal and was eventually relegated. It was against this background that Evergrande Group acquired the Guangzhou team at a price of 100 million yuan, opening a brilliant chapter in the Evergrande dynasty.
The senior management of the Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Group is obsessed with soccer, and since the Group withdrew from the Guangzhou soccer, it has been secretly promoting a project called "Traditional Chinese Medicine Soccer", and has given strong support to the soccer cause in the western region for many years. When the Guangzhou Municipal Government approached the Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Group, the latter expressed its willingness to take over the Guangzhou team, which in the hearts of the fans is the true inheritor of Guangzhou soccer. However, the huge scale and high salary level of Guangzhou team made Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Group feel pressurized. Guangzhou City, on the other hand, has a relatively lighter burden in terms of salary, which makes it relatively less difficult for Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Group to take over the team. However, Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Group is also worried that after taking over Guangzhou City, it will be boycotted by some fans.
For Guangzhou, if they want to find a suitable receiver, the players may need to accept a significant pay cut, or let the big names out of their contracts and rebuild with mainly young players. The salary level of Guangzhou City is low, and it is not difficult for Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Group to take over. However, Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Group is concerned about the poor response from fans after taking over Guangzhou City. As a result, the change of ownership of the two clubs is still under negotiation.
In any case, as one of this year's Chinese Super League (CSL) tournaments, the Guangzhou municipal government will go all out to ensure that the two Guangzhou teams complete this year's CSL journey successfully. Before the equity is dealt with, the government may advance funds upfront to protect the team's preparation and matches. As the matches will be played in Guangzhou, the Guangzhou teams will not have to bear the travel expenses, and all the teams' expenses will be borne by the CFA after entering the Blue Zone of the competition. Therefore, for the second phase of the Chinese Super League, the Guangzhou team does not actually need much money except for players' salaries.
If the players refuse to play because of unpaid wages, Guangzhou may send their young players to the field, and the game may then have to end hastily.
