On July 11, Shanghai Shenhua officially announced the signing of Shandong Taishan player Fernandinho on loan, which drew widespread attention. Regarding the reasons behind Fernandinho’s departure, reports suggested a conflict with head coach Choi Kang-hee. Sports Weekly journalist Wang Xiaorui provided a detailed explanation.
The report indicated that the root of the conflict between Fernandinho and Shandong coach Choi Kang-hee stemmed from playing time.
In mid-June, upon his return from the national team, Fernandinho coincided with Shandong Taishan’s away match against Meizhou. He was not selected to start in that game, which led to dissatisfaction and a confrontation with head coach Choi Kang-hee after the match. Given that Shandong failed to win that game, Fernandinho’s attitude was that he deserved to start over a certain player in the starting lineup.
However, the coaching staff’s decision to bench Fernandinho was based on the fact that he had only been back with the team for two days and had not participated in recent tactical drills. Fernandinho did not accept this rationale and subsequently did not join the team for the FA Cup match in Chongqing.
The report also mentioned that many of Fernandinho’s behaviors in daily life and training had already incited the coaching staff’s displeasure, primarily due to his laid-back nature, which clashed with head coach Choi Kang-hee’s expectations.
On the day before the away match against Beijing Guoan on June 29, Fernandinho arrived in Beijing without the team’s authorization, a move that infuriated Choi Kang-hee. It is understood that the two had a heated argument when they met in Beijing, ending on bad terms.
An insider bluntly stated that Fernandinho’s actions were an open challenge to the head coach’s authority, particularly regarding team selection. A player directly criticizing the head coach’s personnel decisions and attempting to overstep their bounds was an exceedingly rare occurrence in the entire Chinese Super League.
Regarding Fernandinho’s departure, there was no surprise within Shandong Taishan. An informed source frankly admitted, “From the day he was suspended from training and matches, we felt he wouldn’t appear in the team anymore.”
