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Outcry in China over 'fishy' Bosnia transfer

(China Daily)
Updated: 2009-07-21 17:05

The embattled Chinese Football Association (CFA) is under fire by club officials and fans after the unusual move of allowing promising central-back Dai Lin to join Shanghai Shenhua club on Sunday for the modest transfer fee of 500,000 yuan ($73,000) from a Bosnian club.

The move is a questionable one for the Chinese Olympian and former Liaoning player, who had chosen not to extend his contract with Liaoning earlier this year and was placed on the transfer window at a price of four million yuan ($586,000).

After negotiations with Shanghai broke down, Dai joined FK Slavija Sarajevo, a Bosnian first division league club, as a free player, in May. But Dai never took part in any competition or daily training in two months with the overseas club and suddenly returned home and appeared at the Shenhua training camp on July 10.

Liaoning was due to receive compensation fees, according to FIFA rules, after allowing him to play for FK Slavija Sarajevo.

But the CFA move on Sunday to allow Dai to join Shenhua now represents a massive loss for Liaoning, who will likely lose millions in cash, and an economic coup for Shenhua boss Zhu Jun, who has long coveted the player.

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"I'm sure there is something fishy behind this," said Sui Yan, deputy manager of Liaoning. "Why did he come back in just two months without even competing and training? Why did the deal to Shanghai shrink to 500,000 yuan?

"If all of our players use this method to complete their transfers to another domestic league club, everything will be in a mess."

The 500,000-yuan deal is set to be finished in two days, according to reports.

Sui said allowing Dai's transfer is a bad example for future deals in the domestic market. Still, he admitted there are some loopholes in the CFA rulebook that were capitalized by Shanghai Shenhua. He has asked the CFA to amend some of the rules to keep in accordance with FIFA rules.

"We had expected that CFA would impose a punishment on Dai. We are disappointed that CFA is allowing this to happen. But we have to respect the CFA's decision."

Shenhua boss Zhu insisted they did not break any rules but apologized that the move would hurt Liaoning.

"The transfer is progressing according to the rule. We did nothing wrong. But we know we have hurt the club sentimentally," Zhu said. "I'm so sorry."

CFA officials warned against any copycat deals by other clubs, saying action will be taken to update the rules.

"Dai used the loophole of rules. If other clubs dare to simulate this, the action (from CFA) will be totally different as we will have rules to restrict it," said CFA official Zhu Heyuan. "I hope the controversy around Dai's transfer will turn into a good thing. It will push the CFA to perfect the rules."

The nation's soccer governing body has long been criticized for lacking consistent, tough and updated rules and regulations to develop the sport, which has been undermined by match-fixing, fans riots and transfer disputes in the past years.

China, which topped the Olympic gold medal tally at last year's Beijing Games, is a perennial underachiever in soccer and only managed to make it into World Cup finals once in history - in the 2002 World Cup in Japan and South Korea.