Oscar may be the seventh most expensive footballer ever, but that doesn’t make him a household name in China.
Former Chelsea midfielder Oscar posted a video of himself playing a public piano at a Chinese shopping mall this week.
The most striking thing about the video is not how tuneful the Brazilian is, but how little attention he is getting.
???? #O8 pic.twitter.com/3pR85Gib6L
— Oscar (@oscar8) January 18, 2017
Imagine if this had have happened in London, or anywhere else in the UK…
Oscar would likely have been mobbed by fans demanding selfies, autographs etc.
But nobody bats an eyelid in China.
This may be because Chinese people are generally more polite than us cheeky Brits, but it is more likely to be because he is not a national celebrity over there.
Football is the national sport of England (and then some). We love it.
Conversely, it is still rather niche in China, despite the crazy money being thrown at it.
It would be foolish to suggest that the primary motivation behind Oscar’s move to the Far East was anything other than financial, but it must be nice for him to be able to walk the streets like a normal bloke out there too. That must make a big difference to his life.