Tianjin Quanjian say CSL rules ruined Diego Costa, Radamel Falcao deals

Posted Wednesday, January 18, 2017 by ESPN

Tianjin Quanjian owner Shu Yuhui has said he had looked into a move for Chelsea's Diego Costa and drawn up a contract for Monaco's Radamel Falcao before the Chinese Football Association (CFA) announced rule changes on overseas players.

On Monday, the CFA imposed a reduction of the number of foreign players able to be fielded in the forthcoming season, which begins in March, warning that limits would be imposed in order to reduce "irrational investment."

Shu, who said he had also been exploring moves for Paris Saint-Germain's Edison Cavani and Real Madrid's Karim Benzema, has been working with agent Jorge Mendes on his plans to strengthen the squad.

"Our club had a massive investment plan for the new season but it was tightened up by the new rules," Shu told Tianjin Sports Channel.

"I made an appointment with Mendes and he came to my hometown to visit me. At that time, we were interested in signing Costa.

"We need an out-and-out striker so we made a bid for Benzema. We also made an attempt for Falcao.

"As a matter of fact, the club had even prepared the contracts for Falcao and Raul Jimenez, but the new rules forced us to give up on them.

"PSG told us Cavani would only be allowed to leave in June, even though the player himself was willing to join us. The same can be said for Costa because Chelsea will also only let him leave in June.

"However, the new season of CSL will almost have reached the halfway stage in June -- and we can't wait that long."

Shu, who made his fortune in herbal medicine, said Tianjin had now turned their attention to Fiorentina striker Nikola Kalinic.

The club gained promotion to the top flight under coach Fabio Cannavaro, with the Italian steering the club to the China League One title last season.

"We are currently discussing whether to hold onto [former Brazil striker] Luis Fabiano," Shu said. "But Cannavaro told us he preferred Kalinic, who would perfectly fit into the team's style of play."