SIPG linked to Brazil ace Hulk after winless streak
Print Edition
SHANGHAI SIPG has been linked to Brazil international Hulk after failing to get a victory in the last five rounds of the Chinese Super League.
Last year’s runner-up drew 1-1 with Tianjin Teda in its 14th-round CSL match at Shanghai Stadium on Saturday and is now fourth in the 16-team standing on 24 points — 12 points behind leader Guangzhou Evergrande.
Hulk, or Givanildo Vieira de Sousa, is currently playing for Russian side Zenit St Petersburg. According to Oriental Sports Daily talks between the two clubs have been in progress, and SIPG might pay a 55-million euro (US$61 million) transfer fee for the striker, who turns 30 next month. Hulk will reportedly receive an annual salary of 20 million euros.
Making way for Hulk at SIPG could be either Jean Evrard Kouassi of Ivory Coast or Ghana captain Asamoah Gyan. A decision is expected soon as the 2016 CSL summer transfer window is from June 21 to July 12.
Gyan has been continuously bothered by injury since joining SIPG last year. Jiefang Daily said that though Gyan is a good player, his contribution to the team is not worth the 30-million yuan (US$3.06 million) the club paid for his salary and transfer fee. The paper also questioned SIPG head coach Sven-Goran Eriksson’s “inflexible player substitution strategies”.
In Saturday’s match, Evrard struck the opener for SIPG in the closing minutes of the first half. Tianjin equalized in the 79th thanks to a superb long-range strike from Hui Jiakang. Eriksson said the result depressed the team as SIPG played better and created a lot of chances.
The other Shanghai team, Greenland Shenhua, lost 1-2 at long-term rival Beijing Guo’an in another Saturday match. Shenhua’s Li Jianbin scored from a corner in the 25th. Referee Ma Ning first ruled the goal valid, but soon changed his decision and ruled it a handball after complaints from the hosts. Beijing then scored twice in the second half before Shenhua’s Demba Ba got one in the 83rd.
Shenhua head coach Gregorio Manzano, who coached Beijing before joining Shenhua, questioned referee’s decision over the invalid goal.
“I want to ask why the referee first ruled the goal valid and then changed his decision,” the Spaniard said at the post-match press conference. “The match could have had another ending. But the fact was Beijing won, and we tried our best.‚“
Shenhua (22) is fifth in the CSL table.
Evergrande beat Jiangsu Suning 2-0 on Friday to maintain its top position, it has 36 points. Suning is third on 29, one less than second-placed Hebei China Fortune, which lost 0-1 to Hangzhou Greentown on Saturday.
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