China's Olympic football team captain, Chen Tao, has threatened
to retire at an early age if his hard-line club refuses to allow
his transfer.
Chen's strong warning came on Wednesday after Changsha Jinde
priced him at 13 million yuan in the transfer market, an
astronomical price tag that's expected to hold back biddings and
force the promising star to stay with the team.
A long injury break forced the talented attacker onto the bench
for most of last season, during which the Italian Serie A side
Genoa eyed off the player and invited him for a trial training
session.
But the offer was denied by his club, which upset Chen and made
him resolute to leave.
The fray escalated recently after Chen contacted Henan Jianye
about a possible future at their club. The talks irritated the
Changsha side who condemned it on the grounds that it undermined
the team's regulations.
An arbitration has been arranged by the Chinese Football
Association on Thursday to decide on the player's fate.
(CRI.cn December 27, 2007)