The 2025 season of the Chinese Super League (CSL) promises to be full of excitement, with many highlights such as the departure of Oscar and Bargas from the Port team, which significantly weakened their championship-winning potential. The new season's title race may become more chaotic. Additionally, newly promoted teams like Dalian Yingbo and Yunnan Yulong have made significant investments, enhancing their competitiveness and adding suspense to the relegation battle. The foreign player policy remains unchanged, allowing five foreigners to play simultaneously, but the total number of foreign player registrations for the entire season has been reduced from seven to six, indicating a very low tolerance for foreign player errors, with only one foreign player allowed to be replaced during the summer transfer window.
After the departure of Oscar and Bargas, the Port team has already fallen from being the top contender for the championship. Their foreign player lineup has significantly weakened, and there has been no news about new foreign players. The domestic players are too old and their form has declined, causing a significant drop in the team's strength. As a result, the advantage of Shenhua seems even greater, especially with Chengdu Rongcheng, who finished third last season, also strengthening their squad. For a moment, the championship race for the 2025 season seemed quite clear, with Shenhua and Chengdu Rongcheng in the first tier, while the Port and Guoan were in the second tier.
After suffering a significant loss in strength, the Port team finally took action and quickly secured two foreign players: Vitor from the Brazilian league and Leonardo from Shandong Taishan. Vitor was the first to be confirmed, and the player has already flown to Shanghai to sign the contract. Leonardo has long been rumored to join, and now it has been confirmed by the Shandong media that Leonardo will transfer to Shanghai Port. Leonardo still has one year left on his contract, so he is still a player of Shandong Taishan. Although Zhejiang Team wanted to keep him, the decision-making power lies with Shandong Taishan. It appears that the Brazilian forward was ultimately traded to the Port team. It is likely that the Port offered a higher transfer fee, which is why they ultimately won Leonardo.
The Brazilian forward currently has a market value of 4 million euros, ranking among the top three in the current CSL. It is estimated that this transfer window will not see any new foreign players joining the CSL for over 3 million euros. Therefore, considering the current foreign player situation, players like Leonardo and Crescendo are considered top-tier foreign players and are highly sought after or retained by various teams. At the same time, Beijing Guoan has also made a significant signing, with official news from J-League giants Gamba Osaka announcing that their midfield core, Dawan, has left the team, with his next destination being Beijing Guoan.
Dawan is an absolute mainstay of Gamba Osaka, having played 102 games for the team over three seasons. He possesses strong defensive capabilities and outstanding heading ability, making him a significant foreign player upon his arrival in the CSL. Originally, both the Port and Guoan were at a disadvantage in the championship race for the new season. However, with the addition of these powerful foreign players, the championship situation will change instantly, allowing the Port and Guoan to enter the first tier of championship contenders.