BRAZIL international Oscar is to leave Chelsea and join Chinese Super League (CSL) side Shanghai SIPG in a reported 60 million pounds (US$73.5 million) deal that has smashed the Asian transfer record.

    The amount, if confirmed, would break the CSL’s transfer record, also held by SIPG, when it signed Oscar’s compatriot Hulk, who joined from Russia’s Zenit St. Petersburg last year for 55.8 million euros (US$58.3 million).

 Oscar, 25, joins Shanghai after a glittering European career, which saw the attacking midfielder score 33 goals in nearly 170 appearances for both Inter Milan and Chelsea.

    While at Chelsea, the Americana-born star, who has appeared 48 times for his country, won the English Premier League and League Cup double in 2015, as well as the 2013 UEFA Europa League title.

    He was also a part of the Brazil team, which landed the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup crown.

    With Oscar in their ranks, Shanghai SIPG — currently under the guidance of former Chelsea coach Andre Villas-Boas — will now no doubt be looking to improve on last season’s domestic performance when the side finished third in China’s top-flight.

    In the 2016 AFC Champions League, the side reached the quarterfinals before being knocked out by eventual winner Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors.

    The 2017 edition of Asia’s premier club competition will see Shanghai SIPG attempt to enter the Group Stage through the playoffs where it will meet either Thailand’s Sukhothai FC or Yadanarbon FC from Myanmar on Feb. 7.

    Oscar has fallen out of favor under Antonio Conte at Stamford Bridge, playing 11 matches this season but has not started in the Premier League for the leader since mid-September, when Chelsea was beaten 2-1 by Liverpool.

    Oscar will be the latest player with Chelsea connections to play in China, following Didier Drogba, Ramires, Nicolas Anelka and Demba Ba.

    Given the riches on offer, the CSL is quickly becoming a serious option for Europe’s most high-profile players.

    Oscar joins the Chinese side at a time of financial boom for the league, with five of the 14 best-paid soccer players in the world now playing in the CSL.

    Graziano Pelle, Ezequiel Lavezzi and Jackson Martinez are all recent arrivals in the league, while Villas-Boas himself is also on big money, earning 11 million pounds a year since replacing former England boss Sven Goran-Eriksson.

    Chelsea manager Conte has recently spoken of the “danger” posed by the big-spending CSL sides, which now boast the financial clout to outmuscle Premier League rivals.

    Speaking before the Oscar deal was officially announced, he said: “The Chinese market is a danger for all teams in the world; not only for Chelsea but all teams in the world.

    “But I think that we must be concentrated on our work. I think that this league is fantastic and to play in this league is a great opportunity, a great honor.”

    (SD-Agencies)