Chapter 388: Chapter 387: The World’s Number One B2B
Making money is certainly a good thing.
But a decrease in spending also signifies certain things.
Even though Lazio initially had higher expenditures than revenues, with Manchester United taking away the "White Witch" Juan Sebastian Veron for 42.6 million Euros, Lazio’s net spending for this season was only 20 million Euros.
Lazio agreed to the deal with Manchester United because United was willing to sell their central defender Stam to Lazio.
In the end, Stam transferred to Lazio for 25.75 million Euros.
However, even with the net spend of the Serie A giants decreasing, it was still much higher compared to other leagues.
Take the English Premier League for example, where powerhouse Manchester United’s net spend for the summer was only 42 million Euros.
That was nearly the price of one Veron.
This was the investment reached because Ferguson wished to "continentalize" Manchester United, transforming the "rough" English style of the team into one that was more technical.
Additionally, Manchester United made offers for several forwards at the same time.
This included PSV Eindhoven’s striker Ruud van Nistelrooy, Argentine Independent’s striker Diego Forlan, and Sporting Lisbon’s European Golden Boot winner, Ronaldo.
Among them, Forlan was the most complex case.
He was willing to go to Old Trafford, and Argentine Independent was also willing to let Forlan go, but there was a transitional period... They would have to wait until the winter window for Forlan to join Manchester United.
As for Ronaldo... Ronaldo asked Deng Kai for his opinion on this transfer.
At this time, although the Premier League’s prestige had not yet risen, Manchester United’s prestige was already full.
Having won the European treble, Manchester United was at the zenith of their fame, securing the Premier League title three times in a row and raising the league’s prestige to a certain degree.
Before this, only stars like Bogkamp who were not faring well in Serie A were willing to come to the Premier League.
You see, Zidane, Rivaldo, and even Nedved – Manchester United invited them several times, but they really didn’t come.
The introduction of Veron held the same significance as La Liga’s acquisition of Zidane, signifying the strengthened competitiveness of the Premier League and La Liga.
But these two transactions, in the long run, couldn’t be more different.
In the future, who doesn’t know Zidane?
But how many new fans know about Veron?
"Ronaldo, you’re a smart guy. Just wait a few more days, and you’ll know whether you should accept Manchester United’s invitation," Deng Kai said on the training field, giving Ronaldo plenty of space to think for himself.
On Manchester United’s front line, they had the deadly duo of Cole and Yorke, with baby-faced super sub Solskjaer; now they were also extending invitations to several forwards simultaneously.
Ronaldo was only sixteen. Would he have a spot there?
In the world’s unwritten rules, even if the abilities are equal, the sixteen-year-old should sit on the bench.
People subconsciously feel that the young are unreliable, hesitant to trust them completely.
Two days later, Manchester United officially announced the acquisition of Van Nistelrooy from PSV Eindhoven for 28.5 million Euros.
Subsequently, Sporting Lisbon rejected Manchester United’s offer for Ronaldo.
Because Ronaldo wouldn’t accept the status of a "substitute’s substitute."
As Manchester United sought to strengthen their ranks, Arsenal, their biggest rival in the Premier League, was also reinforcing.
But their method was much more economical than Manchester United’s.
Upon Professor Wenger’s invitation, Arsenal secured the free transfer of Sol Campbell, whose contract with Tottenham had expired.
When Tottenham fans found out, they reviled Campbell as a Judas, betraying them by directly joining the arms of their North London derby arch-rivals; they would never forgive Campbell.
On the other hand, Arsenal extensively trialed a group of young trainees from France and the Ivory Coast.
And within them, they discovered some promising talents.
Among them, a young man named Kolo Toure had received a professional contract with Arsenal and the privilege to train with the first team, with the hope of playing for the first team next season.
It would be a contract that changed his destiny.
But despite his happiness, Kolo Toure felt a tinge of sadness.
That’s because his younger brother by two years, Yaya Toure, had not caught Arsenal’s eye and missed the chance to join their youth academy.
Yaya Toure was saying goodbye to his brother Kolo at the gates of the Arsenal training center, Colney, with a backpack on his shoulder, ready to wander to a distant place, to the next team willing to give him a trial.
That team was Beerschot AC in the Belgian top league.
Without surprises, Yaya would spend two years there, then move to Shakhtar Donetsk in the Ukrainian Premier League, and after spells at Olympiacos in the Greek Super League and Monaco in Ligue 1, he would finally arrive at Barcelona.
But that wouldn’t be Yaya’s ultimate destination; he would be transferred to Manchester City, where he would pioneer the "box-to-box" B2B midfielder era and thus become the world’s top midfielder.
However, when Yaya turned around, an unexpected figure appeared.
A middle-aged man stood before Yaya, saying, "Last year, on this day, I took a Swede from here, you might have heard his name, Zlatan Ibrahimovic."
"He became a treble winner with us and stood atop the UEFA Cup!"
"Today, I want to take you with me, will you... will you come with me?"
Trigella looked at Yaya Toure.
The latter nodded his head like a man possessed.
Sporting Lisbon!
He had received an invitation from Sporting Lisbon!
The birthplace of legendary footballers!
Watching the receding figures of Yaya Toure and Trigella, for the first time, Kolo Toure felt envious of his brother.
Although Arsenal was also famous for developing young players.
It would still be quite difficult for Kolo Toure to get a chance to play for the first team in the short term.
But Yaya Toure, barring any surprises, would likely get a chance to play in the Primeira Liga next season and might even become a major rotation or even a starting player for the team!
The backs of Trigella and Yaya Toure were also captured by the English media.
"Trigella has picked up another player from the doorstep of Arsenal’s training ground, will he become the next Swedish prodigy?"
"He won’t be the next Swedish prodigy! Because he is Ivorian! Yaya Toure, another shining Ivorian football star in the making?"
"Kolo Toure: I’m very happy that my brother could join Sporting Lisbon. No young man could refuse the call of Sporting Lisbon!"
"Trigella: Yaya Toure has the potential to become a world-class midfielder, and I first noticed him because of Deng Kai. Kai is very keen to spot the spark in players of the same age group!"
"Drogba: I’m thrilled to have an Ivorian compatriot join the team. If there’s anything, just come to me, and I’ll go to Brother Kai!"
"Wenger: Yaya Toure’s physique is too slender, his dribbling skills are lacking, making it hard to adapt to the intensity of Premier League football. He and Ibrahimovic are two different cases; Ibrahimovic had disciplinary issues, while Yaya lacks the strength and potential. But of course, I hope he can prove me wrong in the future because I am always happy to see every young player succeed!"
It must be said, Professor Wenger had a generous spirit.
He didn’t completely write off Yaya Toure.
But Arsenal fans found it hard to feel positively about Sporting Lisbon.
Because this was the second time Sporting Lisbon had sniped a player from their discard pile.
No one likes someone who always rummages through their trash, especially when they find something of value.
It makes them look like they can’t recognize a treasure.
With gains, there are losses; Sporting Lisbon welcomed Yaya Toure for less than one hundred thousand Euros, while at the same time, their loanee John Terry returned to his parent club Chelsea.
