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Chinese Super League club ‘scraps moves for Costa, Benzema, Falcao and Cavani’ after limits on foreign players
Tianjin owner claims multiple deals had been lined up by big-spending club before rule change
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Diego Costa’s hopes of a move to China may have been scuppered by the Chinese Super League’s new limit on foreign players, according to Tianjin Quanjian’s owner.
Shu Yuhui claims the club scrapped moves for some of world football’s biggest stars including Costa, Karim Benzema, Radamel Falcao, Raul Jimenez and Edinson Cavani after a surprise rule change restricting the number of foreigners teams are allowed.
Billionaire Shu told Tianjin TV that contracts had been agreed with Monaco’s Falcao and Benfica’s Jimenez and massive deals lined up for other stars before Monday’s rule change by the Chinese Football Association.
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Teams will now be allowed only three foreigners in their matchday squads in the coming season. Previously they had been allowed five – four from any country plus one Asian.
“If [the rule] had been ‘4 +1’ as in the past, then we would have made a big investment this year, but now it seems to be changed to three,” Shu told Tianjin TV, Sina Sports reported.
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