One aspect of football that fans might enjoy more than the game itself is the crazy off-season transfer rumors. Thai fans are no different in this regard and avidly follow all of the gossip surrounding their team’s potential acquisitions.
World football has seen plenty of ambitious and eccentric club owners try to tempt global stars to join their clubs in the twilight of their careers.
Unsurprisingly, the Thai League is no different, and fans have been treated to a whole host of crazy transfer rumors over the years.
Today, Main Stand looks at some of the superstars once linked to Thai League clubs, how genuine the reports were, and ultimately why the deals didn’t come to fruition.
Thierry Henry to Nakhon Ratchasima
This rumor first surfaced back in 2014, back when Nakhon Ratchasima Mazda F.C. were still playing in Division 1 (present-day Thai League 2) but had the vision of becoming one of the country’s leading clubs.
It first emerged when Facebook posts claiming to cite an ‘insider from the club’ stated that Swatcats manager Watcharapol Tomorsak was talking with Thierry Henry’s agent.
However, looking at things objectively, Henry was playing for the New York Red Bulls in Major League Soccer (MLS) at the time. As a designated player, he was earning a salary of $5.6 million per year, or around ฿198 million. By contrast, the Swatcats were proposing a contract of ฿20 million per year, which came close to a 90% pay cut for the French star. At that price, there was no way it was going to happen.
Diego Costa and Luís Nani with Lamphun Warriors
The most recent rumor on this list involves big-spending Lamphun Warriors, who were expected to bring in a major superstar upon their promotion to the top flight for the first time in 2022.
The rumors started when a Thai League Facebook page posted that Pongsiri Tarachawongsuk, Lamphun’s president, was in talks with former Atletico Madrid and Chelsea star Diego Costa. Having already added former Liverpool defender Aly Cissokho and Barcelona forward Jeffren Suarez to his team, back when they were in Thai League 2 no less, the deal didn’t seem impossible.
However, whether the rumor was true or not, Costa’s salary is €4 million (around ฿150 million) per year, playing in the Brazilian Serie A with Atlético Mineiro. Even in recent seasons, Costa has been attracting interest from top European sides such as S.L.Benfica in Portugal, making a move to Thailand highly unlikely.
After the Costa deal broke down, Lamphun moved on to former Manchester United star Luís Nani, who was playing with Venezia FC in Italy. This rumor was posted on Pongsiri’s personal Facebook, which showed he had been in contact with the Portuguese winger through Jeffrén Suárez. However, it read: “I tried my best and fought very hard for this deal. Another one down.” Nani would eventually sign for A-League side Melbourne Victory later that window.
Gabriel Omar Batistuta with Buriram United
This next rumor was back in 2010 when Buriram PEA (now Buriram United) had a chance to rebuild their team after their takeover by Newin Chidchob. In line with the theme, the new boss said he was looking for an “electric” player and saw the 41-year-old Gabriel Batistuta as a great option as a player and coach.
However, to be frank, this rumor was also far-fetched. Batistuta retired in 2005 after a stint with Qatari side Al-Arabi F.C, where he received a staggering €4 million per year. Back in the early 2000s, that salary was equivalent to what was being earned by actual world-class players.
Most importantly, Batistuta was a player with a unique mindset. No matter how talented he was, he always said that football was only an occupation for him and not his passion. Five years after retiring, his drive was almost certainly gone, and there was likely nothing the club could do to bring him to Thailand.
Alessandro Del Piero with Muangthong United and PTT Rayong
One rumor which had a genuine chance of coming to fruition concerned former Italy and Juventus striker Alessandro Del Piero. After calling time on his 19-year spell in Turin in 2012, aged 37, the forward was linked to clubs all across the planet. Reigning Thai champions Muangthong United had contacted Del Piero with hopes of luring the superstar to Bangkok. However, the rumors quickly died down, and the striker joined A-League side Sydney FC instead.
Fast forward to two years later, and Del Piero, now aged 39, was linked with a move to Thai side PTT Rayong. Prawut Tawornsiri, PTT Rayong’s team manager at the time, revealed that the club had been in talks with the Italian maestro. In fact, they had initiated procedures by submitting transfer proposals to Sydney FC and getting in touch with the strikers’ entourage. On top of the hefty salary, PTT Rayong also offered to host a farewell match for Del Piero if the Italian legend chose to retire with them.
“We really wanted Del Piero to join our club and retire with us where we will host a grandiose farewell match to honor the legend for coming to play in the Thai League,” Prawut revealed on PTT Rayong’s fan page.
Whatever the reason may be, ultimately Del Piero ultimately chose to join Indian Super League side Delhi Dynamos FC instead. According to Sumedh Pande at Sportskeeda, the forward picked up a cool ฿65 million per year in the Indian capital - an amount that no Thai League club would be willing to offer.
Nicolas Anelka and Ronaldinho with Nakhon Ratchasima
After the rumors with Henry during their second division days, the Swatcats returned with an even wilder rumor after being promoted to the top flight in 2015. They were supposedly on the scent of Nicolas Anelka, the French star striker who has played in almost every European prestigious league.
By 2015, Anelka had already amassed plenty of experience in Asia. He played for Chinese Super League side Shanghai Shenhua FC in 2013, where he picked up no less than £170,000 GDP (฿7 million) per WEEK, equivalent to the top players in the Premier League. By 2015, he was plying his trade for Mumbai City FC in India, with a salary of ฿97 million per year - a price the Swatcats were unwilling to pay.
However, the Isaan outfit was at it with an even wilder rumor just one year later, aiming to sign 36-year-old Brazilian legend and former Ballon D’or winner Ronaldinho. There were not many details on this rumor, and having a player of his caliber and pedigree in the Thai League is frankly hard to imagine, even at his advanced age.
Rafael van der Vaart with “a famous northern club”
Another rumor which emerged in 2018 concerned Rafael van der Vaart, a former Dutch international midfielder who previously played for Real Madrid and Tottenham Hotspur.
By then, Van der Vaart had been retired for two years after calling time on his career when playing for FC Midtjylland in the Danish League. No one knows where the rumor first came from, but big sports publishers in Thailand soon reported that the Dutch playmaker ‘shows interest in playing in the Thai League.’ Some sources claimed the team in question was a ‘powerhouse from Northern Thailand.’
Furthermore, there were rumors that Van der Vaart was willing to take a pay cut from $20,000/฿650,000 per month to around ฿450,000 for Thai League teams to afford him. At least from a financial perspective, this rumor seems considerably more sensible than others on this list.
Of course, this was far from the truth. Van der Vaart retired due to chronic injury issues, hence returning to the professional game would make little sense. In the end, the rumors died down as quickly as they had emerged, and today the Dutchman is pursuing a career in darts instead.
There have been many rumors in the past, and there will be many more to come, but realistically speaking, Thai clubs cannot afford these players’ hefty salaries. Furthermore, unless there is a considerable improvement in the standard of the Thai League, it seems pretty unlikely that we will see these global stars playing here anytime soon.
Sources:
https://www.mainstand.co.th/1148
https://www.smmsport.com/reader/news/379263
https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/football/15881760/diego-costa-atletico-mineiro-free-transfer/
https://www.90min.com/th/posts/lamphun-warrior-talking-with-diego-costa
https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2302609-sky-sports-reportedly-to-pay-thierry-henry-a-staggering-24m-for-pundit-work
https://mgronline.com/sport/detail/9570000131992
https://www.matichon.co.th/sport-slide/news_967485
https://www.goal.com/th/news/4280/%E0%B8%9F%E0%B8%B8%E0%B8%95%E0%B8%9A%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%A5%E0%B9%84%E0%B8%97%E0%B8%A2/2014/01/20/4556985/%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%B5%E0%B8%813%E0%B8%A7%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B9%E0%B9%89%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%99%E0%B8%9B%E0%B8%95%E0%B8%97%E0%B8%9E%E0%B8%A3%E0%B9%89%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%A1%E0%B8%88%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%94%E0%B9%81%E0%B8%A1%E0%B8%95%E0%B8%8A%E0%B9%8C%E0%B8%AD%E0%B8%B3%E0%B8%A5%E0%B8%B2%E0%B9%83%E0%B8%AB%E0%B9%89%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%94%E0%B8%A5-%E0%B8%9B%E0%B8%B4%E0%B9%80%E0%B8%AD%E0%B9%82%E0%B8%A3%E0%B9%88%E0%B8%AB%E0%B8%B2%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%A5%E0%B8%B8%E0%B8%A2%E0%B9%84%E0%B8%97%E0%B8%A2%E0%B8%A5%E0%B8%B5%E0%B8%81
