What Does Ramires' £25M Chinese Exodus Signal for the Premier League?
Former Chelsea midfielder Ramires has left Stamford Bridge.
The Brazil international traded west London life for an audacious new adventure with Chinese Super League club Jiangsu Suning. Managed by Blues legend Dan Petrescu, inroads existed for Ramires' move, but the most intriguing aspect about the transfer is his price.
Bought by Carlo Ancelotti for "about £17 million" in 2010, per BBC Sport, six years and five major trophies later, the 28-year-old's value has surprisingly increased. According to ESPN FC, Ramires was bought by Jiangsu for £25 million.
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Having signed a new four-year contract in October, Ramires' value was strengthened but never to £25 million.
This fee displays the economic power Chinese football clubs are wielding.
Demba Ba, Gervinho, Fredy Guarin, Asamoah Gyan, Paulinho and Ramires have found their way to China, all within the past eight months. The Chinese Super League is finding recognisable names around the globe who want a payday/are second choice at their current clubs and is offering decent transfer fees and wages—Ramires being the league's most expensive player.
Often, the Premier League is considered the economic hub of world football.
Spanish duo Barcelona and Real Madrid, German giants Bayern Munich, French superclub Paris Saint-Germain and Italy's Juventus rule their respective dominions, but as an entity (based on accessibility, tradition and marketing—rooted in imperialism), England's global reach is unmatched, which translates into their multi-billion pound industry.
The influx of billions leads to cries that "money has ruined football." Some suggest all 20 Premier League clubs possessing the financial capability to cause waves is problematic. A club of Leicester City's status, for instance, would never have found themselves atop the table five seasons ago, but lavish television contracts increase the likelihood for parity and general unpredictability.
"If Chinese clubs are willing to spend £25m for Ramires, I'm guessing they would spend £250m on Lionel Messi and not blink...
— ChelseaTalk (@ChelseaTaIk) January 26, 2016"
In nearly every respect—one's opinion of the quality aside—the Premier League is the ideal mixture of finance and football, but there is every suggestion that if Chinese clubs have the economic wherewithal to spend £25 million a player of Ramires' quality (who is a Brazil international, so not to disrespect the former Chelsea man, but) something invasionary, if not revolutionary, could transpire within the next few decades.
We shan't delve too deep into harebrained theories—European football will forever be the home of Earth's best football. North America, South America, Africa, Asia and Australia have their respective pockets of brilliance, but the table is set for Europe.
The aforementioned superpowers—not even mentioning Portugal, the Netherlands and other capable footballing environments—have a monopoly on prestige, which cannot be broken as long as the globe enjoys football. That is not to suggest, however, competition isn't healthy.
America's Major League Soccer and Brazil's Brasileiro are arguably the closest leagues challenging European supremacy, but they come nowhere near matching the monetary funding to buy the would's foremost starts en masse and in their prime.
Whenever they choose, it appears the Chinese Super League can (and will) test the resolve of established clubs for their players—irrespective of league, age or price.
What does this mean for the Premier League? It must be cognizant that players will always contemplate more playing time and pay rises—where the stadium is located makes little difference under those particular circumstances.
The lure of Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool and others can only last so long on the bench when millions can be made elsewhere. Additionally, if China's top division can splash exorbitant fees for second-choice first-teamers, adding £25 million to television and sponsorship revenue looks a great deal.
More footballers will become aware of the money, opportunity and massive market available to certain individuals and be willing to sample Chinese football.
Should Ramires be considered a modern-day Moses, ready to start an exodus of hundreds of foreign players into an Asian promised land of milk and honey? No; but a future fact is Ramires will not be China's most expensive footballer until the end of time.
If £25 million is the entry-level price for a solid, Brazilian international, one can only imagine what an official world-class superstar would command in his career's prime. We will probably find out sooner than expected—if it ever was expected...
*Stats via WhoScored.com; transfer fees via Soccerbase where not noted.
