Four years after his shock departure for China, Chelsea are still a club that holds a special place in Oscar’s heart.
“I support Chelsea,” the Shanghai SIPG playmaker proudly announced to talkSPORT.
You have the feeling that he would be very happy to talk about his stay at Stamford Bridge for hours.
. or licensors
Oscar left England in 2016 to play for Shanghai SIPG
Oscar made a strong impression during his time in West London.
Stamford Bridge faithful loved the playmaker almost immediately when he scored a brilliant brace against Juventus in his first Champions League appearance for the club.
The second goal of the day was a thing of beauty and unsurprisingly it won the club’s goal of the season award.
On the U-turn, the Brazilian deftly cleared the ball away from a Juventus defender before completing a sublime strike to the top corner with just his second touch.
In four and a half years with Chelsea, Oscar has helped the Blues win the Premier League twice, as well as the Europa League and the League Cup, scoring 38 goals in 203 appearances in all competitions.
What happened next, however, shocked many.
. – .
Oscar played with Premier League icons at Chelsea and won a Premier League title while in West London
In December 2016, it was announced that Oscar would be leaving Chelsea in January 2017 to join the Shanghai SIPG for a fee of £ 60million, with many questioning the move for a player just entering his prime.
Now 29, Oscar has no regrets about moving to China, but his thoughts are already on the future and the Brazil international is now hoping to make a sensational return to Stamford Bridge to end his career.
“I think I will finish at Chelsea because I already had a good time at Chelsea,” Oscar admitted. “Chelsea have helped me a lot to improve myself and to do what I always dreamed of [of], who was supposed to play in the Champions League and they helped me play in the World Cup and win the Premier League.
“I have a lot of friends at Chelsea. If I have a chance to end my career at Chelsea, it’s a dream for me. Of course Chelsea don’t like to buy too many older players which is to be expected as they are a top side in Europe but I will do my best to be in good shape to finish there.
“When you win the Premier League, the Europa League and the League Cup, you’re fine. When I scored my first two goals against Juventus in my first Champions League game, it was incredible.
. – .
Oscar played with Lampard, Hazard and Terry during the Chelsea era
“But I still remember a game where we played against Arsenal and we won 2-0 and I didn’t score a goal, but I made eight or nine tackles and when they changed me to the 88th minute, it was like I had scored. three goals in the match.
“This is what English fans love and what the Premier League is like. You don’t need to score a lot. You have to give your all and this is what I will always remember with me.
Oscar has since gone to lift the Chinese Super League with Shanghai SIPG, but winning the Premier League title with Chelsea is still one of the proudest moments of his career.
“Yes, of course, he’s one of the greats,” continued the Brazil international.
“I won it twice. The other time I came to China in the middle of the season and at the end of the season they won with Conte and I played more than 14 or 15 games.
“It’s a very difficult league so when you win the Premier League it’s amazing. Players who already play in England know the Premier League and how difficult the Premier League is. I am very proud to have won the Premier League.
“It is difficult to choose three [players who were the best to play with] because there were a lot of good players. I think I’ll take [John] Terry and [Frank] Lampard. They need to be in there because Terry is the captain and the legend of the club and also Lampard.
Oscar worked with Hazard under Mourinho, where they won a title
“After, maybe [Eden] Hazard because I really like the way Hazard plays. We played very well together. These three were amazing to me when we played together.
In his first two seasons at Stamford Bridge, Oscar wore the number eleven jersey but decided to move on to Didier Drogba’s return to the club for a second stint, with the Ivorian striker keen to resume his former team number.
Oscar opted for number eight, a bold move given that it made him the first player to wear the shirt after club legend Frank Lampard left at the end of his contract.
Some players feel a weight of waiting when they take a number previously held by a club legend or star player. But not Oscar.
If he felt pressure on his shoulders after making that change, it certainly didn’t show on the pitch, with the midfielder scoring 15 goals over the next two seasons.
Chelsea’s Mason Mount compared to Gianfranco Zola by Alan Brazil while Ray Parlor says England midfielder is of a different class
He said: “I was very proud to have the number eight jersey after Lampard. Before, I was very proud to have the number eleven because when I arrived, I took the number eleven and the eleven jersey was that of Drogba who has just scored in the Champions League final for the club and he is one of the club’s top scorers. club.
“I already had a bit of pressure with number eleven, but I did really well and tried to play my football. After that taking number eight was also amazing because I was really a huge Lampard fan. He was one of my idols so I tried to do everything I learned from him because he was one of the best players to ever play on the team.
Oscar still watches Chelsea when he can to this day and one player who has become an important member of the Blues squad is Mason Mount, who scored a stunning Blues winner made him ten unbeaten appearances under Thomas Tuchel on Thursday night.
. – .
Mount, who scored the winner against Liverpool this week, caught Oscar’s attention
Mount received the captain’s armband by Frank Lampard in his last game as Chelsea boss against Luton Town in the FA Cup and has continued to feature heavily under Tuchel since his appointment, although he was dropped for the opener. from German.
One would think, given his strong form this season, that Mount will be part of Gareth Southgate’s England squad for this summer’s European Championships and Oscar was impressed with what he saw.
“I like him,” Oscar finished.
“Sometimes he doesn’t play like me, but sometimes I watch him and I can see a little bit of me there because I also came to Chelsea when I was so young and playing good football.
“I really like him. It has everything you need to improve yourself. He scores goals, he does important things and he knows how to defend and attack. I really like him.”
–
