Leonardo, a fierce player from Shandong Taishan who has set foot in his native Brazil, is now standing at a crossroads in his life. Five days ago, he met with a Brazilian agent in Puerto de Guarulhos, the road to the future, still pointing to the East? According to the Japanese and Korean media on the evening of the 24th, South Korea's Ulsan Hyundai has launched a passionate pursuit of Leonardo and is expected to bring him into the fold.
Before the season ended, Leonardo, who was playing for Hebei at the time, was constantly being asked where he would go next season. Although he still has a four-year contract with Shandong Taishan, the team did not include him in their future blueprint. The reason is that although Leonardo is an outstanding striker, his adaptability is in doubt. He won the Golden Boot in the J3 and J2 leagues, and scored 11 goals in the J1 league, but after joining Shandong Taishan, he only scored one goal in the league, and was eventually replaced by Delgado during the break. Leonardo is also well aware of the differences between Chinese and Japanese soccer: "Japanese soccer pays more attention to technology and tactics, while Chinese soccer relies more on physical confrontation, and scoring goals is mostly accomplished through overhead kicks and stealing points."
As a result, at the end of last year, Leonardo had already expressed his desire to return to the J-League on several occasions. Although he was also recommended to Portimao Man of the Portuguese Super League, he eventually denied the offer. It is reported that Leonardo's first choice remains Japan. However, as he was at a loss to find a J-League team, former South Korean national team superstar and former Zhejiang Greentown head coach Hong Myung-bo, who played for many years in the J-League, extended an olive branch to him, inviting him to join 2020 AFC Champions League winners Ulsan Hyundai. The attraction of this new ownership is apparently great. Seoul Sports Daily is reporting that Ulsan Hyundai have offered to bring in Shandong Taishan's Leonardo on loan, and that the player himself has shown strong interest and decided to take on a new challenge. If all goes well, Ulsan Hyundai and Shandong Taishan will make an announcement soon.
If Leonardo is able to get his hands on Ulsan, he will also have to thank the Chinese Super League's new Golden Boot, Naioka Junior. Ulsan Hyundai were reported to have considered buying him back and Hong Myung-bo sent professional scouts to Europe to look for a foreigner. Initially, they held talks with a Bundesliga power forward, but failed to succeed. They then turned their attention to former Tianjin Tianhai player and Ukrainian international Moras. However, Ulsan Hyundai reached an impasse in their negotiations with other clubs. Eventually, Hong Myung-bo initiated the fourth option and threw an olive branch to Leonardo. It is worth mentioning that if Ulsan Hyundai can advance to the AFC Champions League main round, they will be placed in Group I with Guangzhou. Leonardo will also have a chance to prove himself in front of the third-placed team in the Chinese Super League at that time if he is able to join the team successfully.
