The biggest story in Middle Eastern football this week is Igor Coronado’s big money move from UAE side Sharjah to Saudi Arabia’s Al Ittihad for a reported fee of $12 million, making him the most expensive transfer ever between Gulf clubs.
Acquired from Palermo in 2018 for $5.4 million, Sharjah have certainly made a handsome profit on the Brazilian who led them to the 2018-19 UAE Pro League title – their first in 23 years; his magical performances in the Smiling Emirate earning him that season’s Golden Ball Award for the Best Foreign Player in the country.
Despite the huge financial gain, the Coronado-shaped hole in Sharjah’s attacking play will be nearly impossible to plug. After all, the former MK Dons youngster has contributed to 61 goals in 62 appearances in Sharjah colours.
Coach Abdulaziz Al Anbari has little over a month to get a replacement in place before the 2021-22 league season gets underway. With that in mind, we look at five players Sharjah could recruit to replace their iconic talisman.
Nam Tae-hee (30 – South Korea – Free Agent)
Nam Tae-hee first arrived in West Asia in January of 2012 to join Lekhwiya (now Al Duhail), ahead of their maiden AFC Champions League campaign, and he delivered instantly, finishing the 2011-12 season as their top scorer in the league despite only arriving halfway through the campaign as well as scoring their first-ever goal in continental football.
After seven years in Al Duhail, Nam moved to their domestic rivals Al Sadd, helping them to the 2020-21 Qatar Stars League title, his sixth in the competition. After nine years in Qatar Nam’s journey in Doha came to an end this summer with his Al Sadd contract running out.
The Korean international possesses many of the qualities displayed by Coronado. Looking at the 2020 AFC Champions League where both Nam and Coronado played significant number of minutes, the Korean averaged a superior 1.62 chances created per 90 minutes compared to Coronado’s 1.33, but the Korean’s more static style is highlighted by the fact he completed 1.44 dribbles per 90 minutes, less than half of Coronado’s 3.72.
While Nam comes with the bonus of having no transfer spend required, Sharjah will face stiff competition for his signature, with a raft of clubs in the region as well as in his native South Korea interested in the playmaker, including cash-rich Al-Shabab of Saudi Arabia.
Everton Ribeiro (32 – Brazil – Flamengo)
Replacing one outstanding Brazilian playmaker with another might be a good idea for Sharjah. Everton Ribeiro is one who had already been on the end of a big money move to the Gulf when joined Al Ahli (now Shabab Al Ahli Dubai) in a $15 million deal back in 2015.
The left-footed midfielder led the Red Knights to the 2015 AFC Champions League final and the 2015-16 league title, establishing himself as one of the finest imports in the history of the UAE Pro League.
Unusually for a Brazilian player, Ribeiro continued to be part of the Seleção squad throughout his time in the UAE and after his return to his home country, where he continues to excel for Flamengo, leading them to two continental titles and as many national championships, establishing himself as a regular member of the national team setup even at the age of 32.
Age is critically an area that might concern Sharjah, and while the UAE Pro League is not as physically demanding as those in Latin America, replacing an outgoing player with one four years his senior could be against the strategy of manager Al Anbari who favours players in the prime of their careers, or just before entering it, as was the case with Uzbek midfielder Otabek Shukurov who was recruited as a 22-year-old or Caio Lucas who joined from Benfica last year at 26.
Stylistically, Ribeiro is a less mobile player than Coronado, but that might not necessarily be a negative, as Sharjah have often found themselves needing to allow Caio space to move into from the left flank, and Ribeiro’s ability to slot in at the right flank also allows for the potential of starting local talent Khalid Bawazir centrally.
Prising away a fan favourite at Flamengo might prove a complex deal, and his history at Shabab Al Ahli, one of Sharjah’s fiercest rivals might also be reason for the board to consider other options instead.
Dudu (29 – Brazil – Palmeiras)
World champion at U20s level with Brazil in 2011, Dudu left his native country for Ukraine, joining Dynamo Kiev where he spent the next three years, but could not impress and was loaned back to Gremio for a season before returning home permanently to sign for Palmeiras.
Over the course of five years with the Sao Paulo based side, Dudu made over 300 appearances, establishing himself as one of the side’s most influential players and wearing the captain’s armband on numerous occasions. His stellar displays with Palmeiras earned him a recall to the national team in 2017, six years after he made his international debut under current Al-Nassr boss Mano Menezes.
Joining Dudu would be a second Middle East experience for the diminutive midfielder who represented Qatar’s Al Duhail in the 2020/21 season. Eyebrows were raised when Al Duhail opted against making his loan move from Palmeiras permanent after he recorded 12 goals in his single season in Doha.
Capable of drifting wide onto either flank or pushing further forward to play as a second striker, Dudu provides a level of versatility exceeding that of Coronado and has proven his ability to adapt seamlessly to life in the Gulf. And at 29, he could still perform at a high level for several seasons at the Sharjah Stadium.
Afsha (24 – Egypt – Al Ahly)
Not since the legendary Mohammed Aboutrika struck a left footed half-volley against Club Sfaxien of Tunisia to win the 2008 CAF Champions for Al Ahly has any player received the levels of admiration bestowed upon Mohammed Magdy Afsha by fans of Africa’s most successful football club.
In the CAF Champions League final to end all finals, the first time Egypt and Africa’s most successful club sides and fiercest rivals, Al Ahly and Zamalek, faced-off at the grandest of stages, it was Afsha who settled it late. Showing determination to win the second ball following a poorly cleared ball by the Zamalek defence, Afsha showed exquisite skill and composure to control and hit on the volley from 25 yards out into the back of the net, elevating himself to legendary status at the end of his first season at Al Ahly.
It was not only that goal that established Afsha as Egypt’s next big thing, but the 24-year-old also had a season to remember in the Egyptian Premier League, registering nine goals and ten assists in 44 appearances in his debut campaign after joining from Pyramids SC.
Not only would Afsha bring to Sharjah excellence on the pitch, but he would also bring a much needed winning mentality, having added a league title, Egyptian Super Cup, CAF Super Cup and a third place in the FIFA Club World Cup to an impressive tally for any player, let alone one who is yet to turn 25.
That last point might prove to be both an attraction and a barrier if Sharjah are to pursue the player. While a deal would certainly have the potential to replicate the financial rewards reaped by the sale of Coronado after three years at the club, Afsha is also at the age where he might be after a move to Europe having won everything there is to win at home and in Africa.
Alex Teixeira (31- Brazil – Free Agent)
Another free agent making this list, Alex Teixeira spent every summer of the past decade at the centre of intense transfer sagas and this one is no different.
Brazilian players magnet Shakhtar Donetsk recruited Teixeira as a teenager, and over the next six years he grew into one of the most in-demand talents in European football, drawing attraction from the likes of Liverpool and Chelsea, but he looked east, joining Jiangsu Suning in the Chinese Super League.
His four-year journey at the club culminated in winning the 2020 Chinese Super League title, the first in the club’s history, but then ended abruptly as the club was dissolved following financial problems that hit its parent company Suning Holdings as well as the rest of Chinese football, leaving Teixeira and many others without a club.
Despite being the wrong side of 30, Teixeira continues to attract interest from the likes of 2019 AFC Champions League winners Al Hilal and their Riyadh rivals Al Nassr, both of whom possess the financial prowess needed to bring him to the Kingdom. Turkish side Besiktas also retains an interest in the player.
Having played in China for over four years and never being capped by his native Brazil, Teixeira could be tempted by the potential of following in the footsteps of the likes of Elkeson and Alan to represent China once he completes the five-year period required to meet FIFA eligibility rules.
A more prolific goal scorer than Coronado, Teixeira is capable of playing both as a striker and a number 10, and just like Dudu, his recruitment could work well if the coach decides to bring Bawazir into the starting XI.
With many more options to look at, Sharjah might well opt not to sign any like-for-like replacement for their outgoing talisman.
Mentioned a couple of times within this article, with Coronado injured in most of the 2021 AFC Champions League campaign, Bawazir started every one of their six group stage matches, and delivered three goals and two assists, staking a claim for a place in the starting XI come the start of the new season.
In which case, Sharjah would be able to re-invest the funds in a top-level striker or a right winger, two positions in which they struggled for solutions in the absence of Welliton who has now permanently left the club.
Photo: Sharjah FC
