Beijing Guoan's Renato Augusto (L) and Shandong Luneng's Gil suits up for Brazil and competes against Peru's Paolo Guerrero. (Photo : Getty Images)
With the shocking 0-1 loss of South American powerhouse Brazil to fellow CONMEBOL squad Peru in the final group stage round of the 2016 Copa América Centenario, rumors have emerged that the Brazilian players-rich Chinese Super League could be affected as the national team may no longer look at its stars playing in the Far East to reinforce their squad in the future.
The most recent Canarinho lineup that got eliminated in the group stage of the Copa for the first time since 1987 includes two Brazilian stalwarts, namely center back Gil of Shandong Luneng Taishan FC and midfielder Renato Augusto of Beijing Guoan FC.
Brazil could have advanced in the quarterfinals even if they just pulled off a 1-1 draw against La Blanquirroja, but instead their star-studded lineup failed to take advantage of their chances and was shut out by the Peru defense, as per Goal.
Both footballers' mother clubs are said to be honored to have their players essentially represent their Chinese teams in such a historic tournament for the Americas even though their services are terribly missed as the Chinse Super League is at the height of its season as of the moment.
"Of course we miss and need Gil as he is a very important player for us," said Shandong Luneng general manager Dong Jan. "But it is an honor for Shandong Luneng to have one of our players representing Brazil in such a big competition."
However, ESPN noted that while the said CSL squads will welcome the "early return" of their key players, "the fact that Brazil did so poorly may mean that the Seleção will think twice before returning to Asia when considering its next squad".
If that would be the case moving forward, then China top flight teams could have a hard time persuading top-notch Brazilian footballers who are committed to the national squad to come and join them.
The report also mentioned that while Brazil's loss "made headlines" in the country "as it always would have," Chinese fans are more interested in whether their players will be back for their local clubs in the next weekend's CSL games.
It should also be noted, though, that aside from Gil and Augusto, there are a lot of talented Brazilians in the CSL that were not called by the Pentacampeões, such as Guangzhou Evergrande's Ricardo Goulart and Paulinho, Jiangsu Suning's Ramires and Alex Teixeira, Shanghai SIPG's Elkeson, and Gil's Shandong Luneng teammate Diego Tardelli.
Brazil head coach Dunga expressed concerns about the growing number of his country's internationals playing in China and suggested a few things if they wanted to join the national team.
"I will speak to those players who go have gone to play in leagues not considered first rate," the coach said. "They will need to take greater care of themselves physically, with extra training, which can be difficult. And also they should maybe arrive one or two days before everyone else because of the time and the length of their journeys."
