Chinese club Guangzhou Evergrande are reportedly close to announcing the signing of former Manchester City and Real Madrid superstar Robinho.

The 31-year-old recently announced that he would be leaving Santos yet again. Robinho has spent the last four seasons at the Brazilian club in some form or the other. It was widely thought that he would move to Santos on a permanent basis after engineering his exit from AC Milan much sooner than his contract had been stipulated. The recent boom in Brazilian football would also allow Santos to pay his astronomical wages, but that has been a major twist in the tale after Santos have lost out on his permanent signature.

It is still not clear as to why Robinho decided to quit Brazilian football once again, but he will now be playing forGuangzhou Evergrande. This will put him far from the prying eyes of the media for the time being. One of the major factors that led to his move toGuangzhou Evergrande is the presence of coach Luiz Felipe Scolari. The former Brazil national team boss holds a special relationship with some of the key Brazil players and this includes Robinho. His presence only recently helped the Chinese outfit sign Paulinho from Tottenham.

This move is also likely to end his international career. The 31-year-old has already featured very little for Brazil in the last few years, although this was largely down to poor form and the lack of top-level football. Now that he will be completely starved of top-level games, Robinho is almost certain to be dropped from the Brazil national team till the end of his career. Back in 2008, the Brazilian had just become the most expensive player in English football after a £ 32.5 million transfer from Real Madrid to Manchester City.