Shanghai SIPG head coach Sven-Göran Eriksson. (Photo : Getty Images)
Shanghai SIPG head coach Sven-Göran Eriksson recently said that "bigger names will come" to play in the Chinese Super League after he was asked about the state of China's first division domestic competitions this season.
The 68-year-old Swedish football manager, who was a former head coach of world class clubs such as Manchester City, Roma, Benfica, and the England national team, was recently interviewed by BBC Sport in Shanghai and was asked about the radical growth of the China top flight in the past couple of years.
"Three years ago it was not like this. The football was OK. But this season it's gone crazy, totally crazy," Eriksson said, referring to the massive influx of primed foreign players in the league.
He acknowledged that "one of the reasons" for the CSL's recent accomplishments is the full support of the Chinese government. Chinese president Xi Jinping is a well-known football fan and the chief executive is pushing for the country to improve in the sport, aiming for the Chinese national football team to host the World Cup and also compete in it soonest.
"One of the reasons for that is the government. The president of the country is pushing for football. So I guess he's very happy to see the league is getting better and better but he wants China, as a national team, to be big, to be better in football," said Eriksson.
Eriksson first entered the league in the summer of 2013 after he was signed by Guangzhou R&F to a 19-month deal worth £2 million per season. After his contract expired, he was hired by the Red Eagles and has been their chief bench tactician ever since.
"Even bigger names will come. I think that and the rumors say that," he said. "It's absolutely the right time to be in China for football."
He also believes that even players who are at their prime are interested now in playing in China because of the improving standard of Chinese football, unlike before when past-their-prime footballers are the only once considering a move to the CSL.
SIPG general manager Sui Guoyang also has something to say about the current state of CSL football.
The GM noted that the arrival of world class imports have upgraded the quality of play in the league by so much, saying that "they improved the overall level of the league" and "the better the expat players, the more it will improve the level of domestic players," as per CNN.
