Perennial powerhouse Shanghai SIPG FC walloped contending squad Henan Jianye FC, 5-0, in a 2016 Chinese Super League season match held at the Shanghai Stadium on Sunday, July 10.

The game marked the debut of Shanghai SIPG's recent record transfer signee Givanildo Vieira de Sousa, more popularly known as Hulk, who scored the opening goal of the contest but was taken out of the game early because of a left leg injury, as per ESPN.

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Hulk was acquired by the Massive at the end of last month for a new China transfer record of €55.8 million from Russian Premier League club Zenit Saint Petersburg. He became one of the highest-paid footballers in the world after signing a contract that comes with a €320,000 weekly wage, accumulating to €16.6 million per season.

The 29-year-old Campina Grande, Brazil native's transfer broke the recent record of €50 million made when Jiangsu Suning FC bought Brazilian winger Alex Teixeira from Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk last February.

It was not immediately reported how serious the injury was, but Hulk tried to play through it for a couple of minutes before lying down on the turf following another contact with an opposing player. He was seen placing an ice pack on his injured leg on their bench after a few minutes.

Hulk right away proved his worth after he broke the game's deadlock right at the fifth minute off an assist by Wu Lei. Five minutes later, he was hobbling on the pitch as it looked like he pulled his leg muscle and stayed in the game.

However, he was taken out at the 21st by head coach Sven-Göran Eriksson and replaced by Lu Wenjun as he can no longer get up and continue.

His countryman and fellow striker Elkeson took over the Red Eagles' offensive strike as he scored the team's second goal at the 33rd from another assist by Wu to take a 2-0 lead at the half, via Shanghai Daily.

It was Wu's turn to score at the hour mark to make it 3-0 while Lu Wenjun and Ivorian import Jean Evrard Kouassi added a goal each at the 68th and 73rd to seal the win and complete the hosts' five-goal haul.

Official reports about Hulk's current status or whether he will play in SIPG's next game, against Shanghai Shenhua on Sunday, are yet to be released.

TagsChina Football, Chinese Super League, Chinese Super League 2016, Chinese Super League news, Shanghai SIPG FC, Henan Jianye FC