For a long time, Russian football fans have not been surprised by the transitions of the leading players of domestic clubs to English or Italian teams. And we are talking about legionnaires from other countries who have achieved European recognition in the Russian championship. All the more surprising is the story of the best football player in Russia-2008, the Brazilian Wagner Love, who five years later replaced CSKA Moscow for the Chinese club Shandun Luneng, which is little-known in our country.
To Moscow - with love
The former striker of Brazilian Vasco da Gama and Palmeiras was brought to Russia by love not so much for a leather ball as for money. And also the desire to "light up" and a little later to follow the example of many other Brazilians in a strong Western European club. That, however, did not affect the sincere love of the striker Wagner, whose nickname was sometimes incorrectly inclined like Love, to the capital team.
Wagner played for CSKA (intermittently) from 2004 to 2013. And he managed to win three champion titles, six Russian Cups, excel in the UEFA Cup and become a player in the Brazilian national team. The South American can also add to his asset the unofficial title of the strongest legionnaire who has ever played in the vastness of Russia, and the reciprocal love of army fans.
Play like Love
In the winter of 2013, Wagner reappeared at CSKA and quickly confirmed that short absences in his native Brazil were good for him. And that he has not forgotten how to score. In the form of an army club, Love managed to become the champion and winner of the country's Cup again. After that, CSKA President Giner announced the transfer of the main scorer (199 games and 94 goals) to Shandong Luneng. According to the Chinese media, for 12 million euros. Moreover, the Chinese striker himself, who knows a lot about qualified football players from Europe, paid a salary much higher than in Moscow - four million of the same euros per year.
The most famous foreigners who have performed in China are the French Nicolas Anelka, Didier Drogba and Seydou Keita, the Paraguayan Lucas Barrios, the Englishman Paul Gascoigne, the Italian Alessandro Diamanti and the Russian Sergei Kiryakov.
Wagner Goal
The footballer began to confirm his skills from the first day of his stay in the Celestial Empire. Already in his debut game for a club that won four times in the Chinese championship, he scored twice against Shanghai Shenhua. And he helped the team, the most star player of which was former midfielder of the German "Schalke 04" Hao Junmin, to win 3: 2. And in just ten games in one round of the 2013 season, Wagner scored six times, winning the silver in the championship and a ticket to the Champions League of the Asian Football Confederation.
In addition to Wagner, there are four other legionnaires playing in Shandong. These are defender Ryan McGowan (USA), midfielders Roda Antar (Lebanon) and Leonardo Piskulichi (Argentina), as well as another Brazilian striker Gilberto Masena.
Shandong remembers Nepomniachtchi
According to experts, the appearance in the ranks of one of the strongest Chinese clubs of a forward from Russia, although not a Russian, cannot be called accidental. After all, once the team of Radomir Antich was coached by such famous Russian specialists as Boris Ignatiev and Valery Nepomnyashchy. And on the field ex-forward of Moscow Dynamo Kiryakov and Belarusian defender Yakhimovich, Serbian midfielder Petrovich and Ukrainian striker Nagornyak, famous for their performances again for Russian clubs, shone. However, some believe that the Chinese were able to appreciate Wagner's skills shortly before the transfer - during CSKA's two-match tour of their country.
