Chinese side Shanghai SIPG have had a bid of £60 million for Oscar accepted by Chelsea.
Since Antonio Conte has begun using a 3-4-3 formation at Chelsea, Oscar has been unable to be break into this Chelsea side and has hardly featured this season. His last appearance for the Blues had come in Chelsea’s victory against Spurs in November and his last start was in their Premier League loss against Liverpool in September.
He has failed to score this campaign and he has constantly been linked with moves away from Stamford Bridge due to his lack of game time. Juventus, Fenerbache, AC Milan and Inter Milan have all been rumoured to be interested in the midfielder. But if recent reports are to be believed, the Brazilian’s immediate future is set to be in China.
According to the Telegraph, the Blues have accepted a massive £60 million bid from Shanghai SIPG for the 25-year-old. The report states that Shanghai are currently in the midst of completing the formalities with Oscar, who has reportedly told his teammates that he is leaving the club. Oscar’s departure will make him the most expensive sale in the history of the club, breaking the record set by compatriot David Luiz in the summer of 2014. The report also states that he will earn almost £350,000 a week.
In recent seasons, the Chinese have been spending gigantic amounts of money to bring in big European names from established clubs. Notable players who have moved are Gervinho, Jackson Martinez, Ezequiel Lavezzi, Hulk, Graziano Pelle and Alex Texeira, to name a few. Last season, Chelsea hero Ramires moved to Jiangsu Sunig after falling out of favour under Guus Hiddink. Chelsea legend Didier Drogba and Nicolas Anelka also had short stints in China after ending their Chelsea careers in 2012.
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Early this year, it was reported that Chelsea had turned down a massive £75 million from Chinese side Jiangsu Suning in the January transfer window. But things have changed since at Stamford Bridge and now Antonio Conte has made Chelsea favourites for the title. They seem to have a surplus of midfielders and only two positions to fight for, one of which is occupied by the irreplaceable N’golo Kante.
So Matic, Fabregas, Chalobah and Oscar are essentially fighting for one midfield spot and the fact that Chelsea are only in contention for 2 trophies this season drastically reduces opportunities for everyone at the club. It is easy to see why Chelsea couldn’t refuse such a big amount of money for Oscar. The Brazilian has never been able to live up to his great potential at the Bridge and despite occasional moments of brilliance, he has failed to consistently maintain a good run of form.
Chelsea are currently on a superb winning streak which has seen them win 9 games on the trot in the Premier League, however, Conte will still be well aware of his side’s frailties. It was a largely unsuccessful transfer window, where the Blues failed to acquire any of their top targets. Reinforcements are needed, especially in defence and this money could go a long way in helping the Blues acquire targets more suited to Conte’s style of play.
