In the golden October of 2023, the famous Brazilian media "UOL" broke a heavy news: Brazilian center back Paulão (Paulo Marcos de Jesus Ribeiro), who used to play for our Guangzhou team, said bluntly in a recent interview that the high salary was the key factor attracting him to join the national football team. to join the national soccer team.
However, Paolon's face showed hesitation when he learned that Gremio were interested in transferring him to our country. It was still March 2011, and the 24-year-old from Rio Grande do Sul, who had a brilliant record with the Brazilian national team, was on the verge of signing with the Libertadores. Knowing nothing about Asian soccer, he was skeptical about the move, fearing it would be a turning point in his career. After communicating with his coach, Renato Gaucho, he was eventually persuaded by his coach to accept the transfer, despite asking to play at least one game for Libertadores, as it would bring in more than 2 million Brazilian reais for the coach.
Upon arriving in Guangzhou, Paolong found the Chinese Super League newcomers still in their infancy. However, in less than three months, things have changed drastically. Thanks to the investment of the country's tycoon Evergrande Group, the team is gradually getting on the right track.
Now, ten years later, Paulon remembers that time with emotion, "You just can't imagine how luxurious the new training center was. There was marble everywhere, everything was immersed in gold, it was crazy. Four or five fields are filled with well-manicured lawns, and the gardens are well-tended. The training center also has four hot tubs and huge gold-plated chandeliers."
However, after years of prosperity, the national soccer bubble has burst. A stark example is the fate of Jiangsu, the defending Chinese Super League champions. The championship team had to announce its dissolution after e-commerce giant Suning cut off funding. Defender Miranda and striker Eder, who left the country at the end of 2020, say they did not receive a penny during their time with the team and are trying to appeal to Asian clubs.
The affluence of the early days of the national soccer boom contrasts with the trough marked by crisis and uncertainty in recent months. Two weeks ago, Evergrande had to pay a whopping 1.6 trillion Brazilian reais to creditors for defaulting on its obligations, and stock exchanges around the globe have been rocked. The Guangzhou team's salon could be declared closed at the end of the season due to the downfall of its financiers. The country's economy has slowed down significantly, and with it, investment in soccer has decreased. Clubs and players who once saw our market as a great business opportunity are now facing headaches and uncertainty.
