There might not be much sympathy from the West Ham United fans as Marko Arnautovic’s agent and brother reflects on that controversial move to the Chinese Super League in 2019.
After two years and 21 Premier League goals for the London Stadium outfit, Arnautovic handed in a transfer request while forcing through a move to the Far East.
The nature of his departure left an extremely sour taste for a West Ham United outfit who showed immense belief in the hot-headed centre-forward, taking a £25 million punt on Marko Arnautovic on the back of a stint with Stoke City.
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The global Coronavirus pandemic would hit Arnautovic hard, though, as the Chinese government put a brutal crackdown in place. Thus, leaving the well-travelled centre-forward stuck in his apartment and desperate for an escape route.
Marko Arnautovic’s West Ham United exit backfired
While explaining why a move to Chelsea collapsed for Arnautovic at the peak of his powers, the striker’s brother and agent reflects on the toughest moment of Marko’s extremely hit-and-miss career.
“I took over 100 per cent of his management starting from the Stoke City period. We did it together, and I think we did a good job,” Danijel says on YELLOW-RED The Unicope Football Talk podcast.
“Back then, many top players went to China, just like they go to Saudi Arabia now. When the market peaked, the Chinese league was leading the way, paying massive fees for players like Hulk and Oscar.”
Shanghai SIPG paid a reported £22 million for Arnautovic, while handing the former Inter Milan frontman wages allegedly in the region of £200,000-a-week.
The now-37-year-old would quickly learn, however, that money isn’t everything.
“I was at the stadium watching him before the pandemic hit,” Danijel adds. “I spent several months there and I was also there during the lockdowns. That was truly his biggest mental challenge. He was constantly calling me saying, ‘I can’t do this anymore, I want to come home’.
“You have to imagine you’re sitting there in a hotel room somewhere, I don’t know, on the 20th floor. You can’t even open the window. No fresh air, no one comes in. Not even the hotel staff are allowed in.
“The family back then was actually all ready to move [to China]. All of our things had already been sent over in containers so the children could move into the apartment. The school was set up. Then, the pandemic happened and everything fell through.
“He ended up spending two years over there. I’ll say this much; to make sure that kind of money is there is great, but money simply is not all there is to life, and Marko realised that himself pretty quickly.
“So, it really was a challenge. It was actually really good at the beginning, I have to be honest. Shanghai is an outstanding city. It was really great. The people there, the club, the way they took care of things, it was outstanding.
“But the politics back then… he just needed to get out.”
Bologna rescued Arnautovic while offering a Serie A return
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Arnautovic played only 39 games in China before Bologna came to his rescue in 2021.
“To be honest, I actually negotiated with AC Milan back then,” the agent remembers. “We talked for a long time. But then, Bologna called me.
“I texted Marko right after and said, ‘Listen, Bologna have asked about you’. A few minutes later, Marko calls me back and says, ‘Finish the transfer. I’m going.’
“But that was the biggest challenge because the Chinese club had a lot of money. They asked why. We had to explain to them, ‘Look, he’s depressed, he can’t be with his family anymore, it just doesn’t work.’
“Somehow, we still managed to [finalise the deal] with Bologna.”
Arnautovic recently became Austria’s record all-time goalscorer. At 37, he heads to the 2026 World Cup as one of the tournament’s elder statesmen alongside fellow veterans Cristiano Ronaldo, Luka Modric and Lionel Messi.
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