Back in 2016, Oscar was asked if he wanted to become a Chelsea legend like Frank Lampard, who wore the No.8 before him (via The Sun): “Of course that’s something I want to achieve.
“When I arrived I took the No.11 shirt from Didier Drogba, who is another historic player at the club.
“Now I wear the shirt Lampard used to wear and I want to represent that number in a fitting way — by staying for a number of years and winning many trophies like he did.”
At the time, there was interest from China in the player. He addressed the rumours: “There was interest in me but I’ve no desire to leave Europe.
“The idea of moving to China would be such a huge change for me and would go against everything I’ve achieved so far. Chelsea are a fantastic, very big club and I’m still young. I’m only 24 so I’ve got a lot of football ahead of me.”
A few months later in December, Oscar moved to Chinese Super League side Shanghai SIPG for a reported £60 million. Oscar was reported to have signed a four-year contract with a weekly salary of £400,000, which made him one of the best-paid players in the world.
The Brazilian has since then appeared for the Chinese side 145 times, scoring 44 goals in the process. While he seems to be enjoying his time away from European football, it's safe to say that he did not live up to his own expectations of matching Lampard's success or legacy!
