Chapter 9

On July 1, 2004, the transfer window in the world of football officially opened. On the first day of the transfer window, the English football scene saw a significant event: Wayne Rooney, hailed as the most outstanding talent in English football in nearly 30 years, was transferred from Everton to Chelsea for £25 million!

For a time, this reinvigorated the previously quiet English football scene, making Qiao Wanxian a hot topic of pursuit and exploration by the media.

However, this was just in English football. On that day, the world of football witnessed an even more earth-shattering event, one that surpassed Rooney's transfer in terms of impact: José Mourinho, the coach who won the 2003-04 UEFA Champions League, took charge of Real Madrid! At a grand press conference, Real Madrid's president, Florentino Pérez, confidently declared, "The club has prepared €150 million in transfer fees for Mourinho to use, to launch the strongest challenge for Real Madrid's 10th Champions League title!"

Mourinho, in turn, displayed his characteristic arrogance: "I will definitely lead Real Madrid to win the 10th Champions League title! Because there is one God, and I am another!"

These words undoubtedly caused a storm of shock and excitement worldwide. Not long ago, Chelsea's "Big Cannon" Joe had boasted that the club would spend £100 million on transfers, but before this news could spread, Florentino and Mourinho had already used a more explosive piece of news to focus the world's attention on the Santiago Bernabéu in Madrid.

It cannot be denied that Florentino is an outstanding and perfect businessman. He transformed Real Madrid from a purely competitive club into a globally popular commercial club, with a reputation no less than that of Manchester United, which Alex Ferguson had led for 20 years!

However, at this moment, every football fan around the world probably had one question: Who would Real Madrid sign next?

Real Madrid already had several superstars like Ronaldo, Raul, Zidane, Figo, Beckham, Roberto Carlos, and Iker Casillas. Where would Mourinho look to strengthen the team? The defense? Would he dare to challenge Florentino's "Zidane + Pavon" policy?

If he dared not, then Mourinho would have to spend the €150 million on the midfield and attack. But the midfield and attack were already packed with stars, with Beckham even being pushed back to a defensive midfield role. Who else could he sign?

While the world was in shock, Qiao Wanxian felt relieved. Mourinho going to Real Madrid? This was simply great!

Qiao Wanxian's foresight allowed him to understand the players Mourinho wanted to sign, but at Real Madrid, could he sign Petr Cech or Arjen Robben? Even if he wanted to, they wouldn't want to be substitutes. These were two players Qiao Wanxian greatly admired, and without Mourinho's competition, he felt very confident.

Didier Drogba? Thinking of the African beast, Qiao Wanxian smiled and shook his head. "You can have this one. I already have Rooney, so I don't need Drogba anymore!"

Of course, Qiao Wanxian had another unspoken thought. He was a fan of handsome men and young boys. Drogba's skills were undoubtedly excellent, but was the "African Andy Lau" as handsome as Andy Lau? Qiao Wanxian, with his yellow skin, never thought so.

On July 18, 2004, Rooney finally returned to London from the United States after recovering from his injury, and held a grand fan meeting at Stamford Bridge. The stadium, which can hold 41,841 people, saw over 8,000 fans gather to witness the future star of English football.

The successful signing of Rooney significantly reduced the hostility of Chelsea fans toward Qiao Wanxian.

On July 20, the holiday for Chelsea FC ended, and all players returned to the club for their first meeting with the new head coach.

At the Cobham Training Ground, Qiao Wanxian was standing close to so many stars for the first time, feeling very excited. However, facing players who were generally older than him, he felt a bit out of place.

Since he was here, he had to make the best of it—this was Qiao Wanxian's philosophy of life.

Qiao Wanxian took a few deep breaths, put on a calm expression, and held a document in his hand. He looked at the players who were whispering to each other and said loudly, "Now we will take attendance. Those whose names are called, please stand to my left!"

"Lampard, Joe Cole, Terry, Bridge, Glen Johnson, Makelele, Gallas, Gudjohnsen, Cudicini, Mutu, Duff, Johnson, Crespo, Parker, Veron, Oliveira..."

After calling out these names, Qiao Wanxian felt the immense pressure. Would these big-name players listen to him? Hmm... a few of them weren't very familiar, so he would have to sell them if necessary...

After the roll call, Qiao Wanxian stood with his hands behind his back, facing the Chelsea players, and said loudly, "As the head coach of the club, I have three requirements, which are also my coaching principles. Please pay attention!"

The players quickly stopped their whispers and focused on Qiao Wanxian. He was very satisfied; their professional attitude was commendable, and they did not look down on him because of his youth.

Qiao Wanxian smiled slightly, "The first point, as you all know, is that the team captain for the new season will be John Terry, and the vice-captain will be Frank Lampard. Any objections?"

Whispers started again, and Qiao Wanxian waved his hand and shrugged, "Any objections can only be kept to yourselves. This is final."

"Ha ha..." Qiao Wanxian's simple humor made the atmosphere harmonious and friendly.

"The second point is about our team's training. I don't like to take full responsibility like some head coaches. I will delegate the main tactical training to my assistant, Vítor Baía, a young genius coach."

Before Qiao Wanxian could finish, Veron interrupted, "Wanxian, if you're handing over the training to Baía, what will you do?"

Qiao Wanxian glanced at Veron and noted his name. Interrupting him now, he might rebel in the future! Such players must be cleaned out!

He took a deep breath and said casually, "I will only provide key points during training. Of course, the team's tactical setup and the starting lineup will be confirmed by me."

Qiao Wanxian's second point did not attract much attention from the players, but Baía was deeply moved. During the contract negotiations, he had heard Qiao Wanxian say he would give him enough power to showcase his talent, but he didn't expect such a large degree of freedom. His gratitude was evident.

Actually, Baía had misunderstood Qiao Wanxian. Qiao Wanxian knew his limits; with his current level, could he really direct the entire team's training? He was afraid he would turn Chelsea into a team at the level of the Chinese Super League.

Qiao Wanxian scanned the players again and loudly stated his third point: "My tactical philosophy is a fluid, relentless attack! I advocate a 4-1-4-1 formation with a single defensive midfielder and two attacking midfielders. This will enhance your creativity and defensive capabilities in the attack! Losing is not scary; what's scary is not playing beautiful football!"

Qiao Wanxian's words caused a stir. The players stared at him with wide eyes, showing a mix of surprise and disbelief.

As the team captain, Terry raised his hand to speak, "Boss, everyone loves beautiful attacking football, but to exchange it for wins and losses might not be worth it, right?"

Qiao Wanxian stood tall and said proudly, "The Premier League has 38 rounds in a season. Losing one or two games is not a problem. Even if we lose, we must lose beautifully! Of course, the championship must belong to our great Chelsea!"

"Ha ha, well said, boss!" Terry was taken aback but then burst into laughter. The new captain clearly had a good first impression of Qiao Wanxian.

Baía and the coaching staff began training the players, while Qiao Wanxian sat quietly on the sidelines, holding a small notebook and writing something.

The players thought the head coach was recording each player's technical characteristics and strengths, so they all tried their best to impress the new coach.

Qiao Wanxian's notebook was filled with dense square characters, which no one there would recognize, as they were Chinese characters.

Qiao Wanxian silently watched the players on the field and wrote, "Goalkeeper, left back, center back, right back, attacking midfielder, right winger."

These were the positions he believed needed strengthening. The goalkeeper's transfer target was the Czech goalkeeper Petr Cech, which was a no-brainer. For the left back, center back, and right back, Qiao Wanxian had a big question mark in his mind.

Who would be the attacking midfielder? Qiao Wanxian bit the end of his pen, and a name suddenly popped into his head, making him almost run around the training ground ten times in excitement! If he could sign this player, it would be a groundbreaking transfer!

For the right winger, it naturally had to be the "Flying Dutchman" Arjen Robben. When Robben first started, he often played on the left wing, but with the rise of the 4-2-3-1 formation and the success of the inside run tactic, the left-footed Robben gradually moved to the right wing and later won numerous trophies with Bayern Munich.

Similarly, Cristiano Ronaldo, who was right-footed, started as a right winger but eventually settled on the left wing.

Qiao Wanxian filtered through the historical transfers made by Mourinho at Chelsea, with the most successful being Robben, Drogba, Essien, Ashley Cole, Carvalho, and Cech.

Carvalho was a very stable center back, and Qiao Wanxian hoped to sign him to strengthen the team's defense. However, he was too expensive and a Mourinho loyalist, likely to follow Mourinho to Real Madrid, so this idea was abandoned.

What about Ashley Cole, the world's best left back? Qiao Wanxian's eyes lit up.

The next transfer target was already determined: Goalkeeper: Petr Cech; Left Back: Ashley Cole; Right Winger: Arjen Robben.

As for the attacking midfielder, since the player was special, it would require a long-term effort.