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Jonathan White

Normality has been restored in the Chinese Super League. Guangzhou Evergrande are back at the top of the table.
It’s the first time this season the seven-time champions have been able to look down on the rest of the league.
Fabio Cannavaro’s side won their derby, beating Guangzhou R&F 5-0. The goals came from in-form player Wei Shihao, the indefatigable Paulinho and new signing Elkeson.
Elkeson hit a hat-trick on the third start of his second spell in South China.


Those goals take him to five in three games for Evergrande this season and over the century mark in the Chinese Super League. He has now scored 101 goals in 149 games.
He is only one goal behind former Shanghai SIPG teammate Wu Lei in the CSL’s all-time standings and, with Wu now making hay in La Liga with Espanyol, it is surely a matter of time before the Brazilian breaks the record.




There is also a chance he won’t be Brazilian by the time he does reach the mark.
Elkeson has returned to Evergrande with the assumption that he naturalises to become Chinese. The paperwork is under way, just as it is for his compatriot and teammate, Ricardo Goulart.
It also might be the case for the other players they are supposed to be naturalising: Fernandinho, Alan Carvalho and Aloisio.

#Elkeson 149 games - ⚽️101 league goals! #Legend #GuangzhouEvergrande #CSL pic.twitter.com/hwQNgZ8oh9
— 绰号 Filippo Giudice (@semprepippolino) July 20, 2019

While Evergrande appear to be rushing to naturalise a number of players, it is reported that others will soon be prevented from following suit.
Reports in the mainland media suggest the Chinese Football Association will soon implement further rules on eligibility for naturalisation.
These are said to include that players without Chinese heritage would need to be under 26 to be eligible. Elkeson is 30 and Goulart is 28.

Application letters for Chinese citizenship from the foreign footballers were posted on Weibo (not certain yet if they are real). Their names: Elkeson (Ai Kesen艾克森) Fernandinho (Fei Nanduo 费南多) Aloisio(Luo Guofu 洛国富) Ricardo Goulart(Gao Late 高拉特) Alan (A Lan 阿兰). pic.twitter.com/41wq1CKOsx
— Titan Sports Plus (@titan_plus) July 16, 2019

However, the rumour is that any rule changes will only come in after the Brazilians become Chinese.
Evergrande are often a special case. It’s not quite Real Madrid during the Franco years, but it is hard to miss that they get favourable treatment.
They also have special relationships with other teams – seven of the bottom eight clubs have Evergrande players on loan – and with the Chinese FA, for whom they helped pay Marcello Lippi’s wages.

In 2012, the club were granted an exception when it came to foreign players. Technically, all teams still in the AFC Champions League were allowed, but Evergrande were the only side in the competition.
This season they made another move towards being a de facto Chinese national team within their domestic league, making their own rules to limit foreigners to two rather than three. That becomes much easier once they have their newly naturalised contingent.
Another who seems to operate on their own rules, Marko Arnautovic, scored on his first start for Shanghai SIPG but the champions could only draw 2-2 at Chongqing Lifan.

Marko Arnautovic scores on his debut for Shanghai SIPG and taps the badge as he celebrates pic.twitter.com/ZJzRoRLXMV
— West Ham Clips (@WestHamClips) July 21, 2019

The Austrian celebrated by patting the team’s crest and while it was not quite kissing the badge it upset West Ham fans on social media. The Hammers will miss the budget Zlatan if their own experience in Shanghai is any indication – they lost to Newcastle United there on Saturday night.
Maybe he did want to come to China to win the big trophies, after all. The champions are in third now, two points behind the leaders and a point behind the newly ousted Beijing Guoan.
They lost away to Jiangsu Suning, where an Eder penalty was enough to separate the sides. Roger Schmidt’s side missed Jonathan Viera, who is out for several weeks while the ribs he broke in midweek heal.


That’s a big loss for the team who until the weekend were the favourites for the title. Now that advantage lies with Evergrande.
The Guangzhou heavyweights have won 10 games in a row and they have done so without Anderson Talisca, who they have now welcomed back into the squad after injury.
With just over a week left of the transfer window, the likes of Beijing Guoan need to decide whether they are going to stick or twist in their title race.




They have also been linked with what would be the biggest transfer in Chinese football history, certainly since Oscar moved from Chelsea to SIPG: luring Bale from Real Madrid.
The Daily Telegraph reported that the capital club were prepared to offer Gareth Bale US$1.25 million per week to move to the Workers’ Stadium, almost double his current salary in Spain.
Elsewhere, such as Spanish sports paper Marca, it was reported that Bale’s destination in China would be Jiangsu Suning, the team that shares owners with Serie A side Inter Milan.

According a reliable media source in China, Jiangsu Suning have signed Gareth Bale from Real Madrid. From the media reports from China, the signing should have been fixed. We are now waiting for final official confirmation but it seems to be the biggest boom after Oscar in 2016. pic.twitter.com/U4w57Pg5NK
— Titan Sports Plus (@titan_plus) July 22, 2019

This transfer has since been reported as a done deal in the Chinese media, while other reports have linked Shanghai Shenhua with a move for the 30-year-old.
You can’t blame any Chinese side for wanting Bale. The Wales captain is one of the best in the world and he is available.
Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane made it clear that the man who scored the winning goal the last time the side won the Uefa Champions League is surplus to requirements at the Bernabeu.


Bale’s agent Jonathan Barnett made it clear what he felt of that, calling Zidane a “disgrace”, but in between the screed about the World Cup winner he also said that “there could be a surprise” in regard to his client’s next destination.
Bale moving to a Chinese Super League club would definitely constitute a surprise. As would anyone stopping Guangzhou Evergrande winning the title.
Back to normal, then.
From AFC to Z: the best Asian football podcasts you should know about
Alibaba, the owner of Guangzhou Evergrande, is the owner of South China Morning Post.


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Chinese Super League

Gareth Bale to China? Chinese Super League sides might need him to stop Guangzhou Evergrande

Gareth Bale could be on his way out of Madrid and into China. Photo: Kyodo

FILE PHOTO: Real Madrid's Gareth Bale scores with overhead kick in Champions League final at NSC Olympic Stadium, Kiev, Ukraine - May 26, 2018. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach/File Photo

Manchester United fans would ‘adore’ Gareth Bale, says Real Madrid star’s national boss Ryan Giggs during Hong Kong visit

Gareth Bale scores in the Champions League final. Photo: EPA

Former Welsh footballer Ryan Giggs who played for Manchester United poses for a portrait during a Father’s Day function organised by East Point City, photographed in Tseung Kwan O. 17JUN18 SCMP / Sam Tsang

Soccer Football - Premier League - Manchester City vs Huddersfield Town - Etihad Stadium, Manchester, Britain - May 6, 2018 Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola and their players and staff celebrate winning the premier league title Action Images via Reuters/Carl Recine EDITORIAL USE ONLY. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or "live" services. Online in-match use limited to 75 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club/league/player publications. Please contact your account representative for further details. TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY

Former Welsh footballer Ryan Giggs (left), who played for Manchester United, signing autographs for his fans during a Father’s Day function organised by East Point City, photographed in Tseung Kwan O. 17JUN18 SCMP / Sam Tsang

Manchester United's Portuguese manager Jose Mourinho geatures on the pitch after their defeat in the English FA Cup final football match between Chelsea and Manchester United at Wembley stadium in London on May 19, 2018. Chelsea beat Manchester United 1-0 to lift the FA Cup thanks to Eden Hazard's penalty at Wembley on Saturday to salvage a disappointing season. / AFP PHOTO / Ian KINGTON / NOT FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING USE / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE

Elkeson joining Guangzhou Evergrande from Shanghai SIPG ahead of naturalisation to play for China

Elkeson celebrates with Shanghai SIPG teammates in the 2017 AFC Champions League. Photo: AFP

This photo taken on April 14, 2019 shows Nico Yennaris (top), also known as Li Ke, of Beijing Guoan celebrating with teammate Renato Augusto after scoring during their Chinese Super League match against Henan Jianye in Beijing. - Nico Yennaris was born in working-class east London, played with Harry Kane at Arsenal as a boy and is an England youth international. (Photo by STR / AFP) / China OUT

Shanghai SIPG's Elkeson drives the ball during the AFC Champions League round of 16 football match Shanghai SIPG against Jiangsu Suning FC in Nanjing, on May 31, 2017. / AFP PHOTO / STR / China OUT

===PHOTO CAPTURED FROM INTERNET=== Pedro Delgado holds a shirt featuring the Chinese Super League side Shandong Luneng's badge and the China flag. Photo: Sina Sports

China to naturalise Elkeson and Goulart? New look could be on the way for World Cup hopefuls after Marcello Lippi’s return

Shanghai SIPG Brazilian forward Elkeson is being linked with the Chinese national team. Photo: AFP

(190111) -- ABU DHABI, Jan. 11, 2019 (Xinhua) -- Head Coach Marcello Lippi of China react before the 2019 AFC Asian Cup UAE 2019 group C match between China and the Philippines in Abu Dhabi, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Jan. 11, 2019. China won 3-0. (Xinhua/Li Gang)

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Football


Seven-time champions rise to the top of the table for the first time this season as Elkeson hits three in derby
Wales captain rumoured to have agreed to sign for Jiangsu Suning, according to Chinese media



Wales captain rumoured to have agreed to sign for Jiangsu Suning, according to Chinese media.


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Expresses the views, ideas and conclusions of the author. (Eg. Enough of Crazy Rich Asians, think of crazy poor Hongkongers.)


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The East Stand

.css-1m2rp1p{color:#34b8b5;}The East Stand | Gareth Bale to China? Chinese Super League sides might need him to stop Guangzhou Evergrande

The East Stand | Gareth Bale to China? Chinese Super League sides might need him to stop Guangzhou Evergrande