Chapter 91

After staying in the Maldives for a few days, they then went to Rio de Janeiro to feel the warmth of summer. After celebrating Lucy's birthday during the trip, the group finally returned to the United States to prepare for Christmas.

Cheryl and Lucy went to the Flushing Mall in New York. Joe Wanxian, who had no interest in accompanying women shopping, found a good reason to visit his star pupil, Michael Owen.

Owen was recovering at a specialist clinic in Colorado Springs. When Joe Wanxian saw him again, he noticed Owen's knee was tightly secured with a brace, and he was sitting in a wheelchair, talking to a middle-aged man around forty.

Seeing Joe Wanxian, Owen was very excited, almost jumping up to give him a hug, and exclaimed, "Boss, why are you here? Did you... come to see me specifically?"

Joe Wanxian quickly went over to support him, smiling, "I came to check on your injury. How's the situation?"

Owen replied confidently, "Very good. The doctor said that with my condition, I will definitely be back on the field by April at the latest!"

"That's great news. I'm waiting for you to help the team win the championship!" Joe Wanxian patted his shoulder and then turned to the middle-aged man, hesitating, "Who are you?"

The man extended his hand enthusiastically, a shrewd smile on his face, "I'm Holmes, Michael's agent."

"Agent?" Joe Wanxian was a bit surprised. It seemed this agent had a good relationship with Owen, traveling all the way from England to the United States to see him, even during the Christmas holiday.

However, Owen's response was not very friendly, "He's here to renew my contract..."

"Renew the contract?" Joe Wanxian's eyebrows twitched, and an idea suddenly came to mind.

Back in January, the English media had reported that Owen was dissatisfied with his agent's empty promises and that his contract with the agency had only seven months left, so he planned to change agents. However, due to the busy summer transfer window, he reluctantly extended the contract for another year.

Now, with only six months left on his contract, Holmes had traveled a long distance to find Owen and renew the contract. After all, Owen was a hot star in Europe, and even after missing a month of games, he still led the Premier League scoring charts. If SFX Company had such a top player, it would undoubtedly have a significant positive impact on the agency.

"Michael, I think... you should change your agent!" Joe Wanxian ignored Holmes' sullen face, sat down on the sofa, and said casually.

"Mr. Wanxian, how can you do this?" Holmes' face turned red with anger, "I was the one who brought Owen to Chelsea this summer. How can you kick me when I'm down?"

Before Joe Wanxian could respond, Owen interjected, "Mr. Holmes, please watch your words! Coming to Chelsea was my dream, not because of you! Also, you'd better leave now, or I won't hesitate to inform the hospital..."

Holmes, who had been making good progress in his negotiations with Owen, was caught off guard by Joe Wanxian's sudden intervention, which completely disrupted his plans. He was so angry that his scalp tingled, and he left with a cold snort.

Seeing Holmes leave, Joe Wanxian's face showed a hint of satisfaction, and he smiled, "Michael, who do you plan to have as your agent?"

Owen hesitated, "I haven't decided. If it doesn't work out... I might ask my father to do it."

Joe Wanxian's expression turned serious, and he waved his hand, "No, the family agent model will severely limit a player's development! Hmm... I think... why don't you..."

"Boss, do you have any good suggestions?" Owen's eyes lit up, and he asked excitedly with a sunny smile.

Joe Wanxian pretended to think, "My agent is very good. Her name is Ye Xuan. She's very skilled in negotiations and cares a lot about her clients. She's also Wayne Rooney's agent. If I talk to her, I'm sure she won't refuse."

"Great, if you say so, Boss, let's do it!" Owen said with a smile, showing no signs of disappointment from his injury, perhaps because he was excited to see his coach in a foreign country.

Looking at his injured foot, Owen suddenly thought of something and asked curiously, "Boss, are you of Chinese descent?"

"Yes, why do you ask?" Joe Wanxian was a bit puzzled by Owen's question. These days, racial discrimination, if it existed, was usually directed at black people. White people were generally friendly to Asians.

Owen said with anticipation, "Boss, I've been researching a lot lately. I heard that there's a magical medical technique in China, very advanced and mysterious. It might help me recover from my injury sooner!"

Hearing this, Joe Wanxian laughed. Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM)? In this world, probably no one understood TCM better than he did. Although he was just a pharmacist in his previous life, TCM emphasized the transmission of knowledge, and he had a good understanding of common ailments.

However, the traditional Chinese belief that "the body and skin are gifts from one's parents and should not be discarded" naturally limited the development of TCM. The focus was on nurturing, and surgery was not part of TCM, let alone bone-setting. Over thousands of years, TCM had always emphasized "nurturing" for injuries, leading to the saying "a hundred days for bone healing."

Owen's words reminded Joe Wanxian that while it was impossible to use a black jade bone-healing ointment to heal Owen's bones, he could use herbal ointments to promote bone cell regeneration and strengthen his bones. Although it wouldn't speed up his recovery, it would significantly reduce the risk of future injuries, thus extending his career.

Seeing Joe Wanxian's expression change, Owen hesitated and whispered, "Boss?"

Joe Wanxian was taken aback, then burst into laughter, "Michael, you will definitely become the best striker in the world, definitely!"

...

After leaving Owen's clinic, Joe Wanxian received a call from Joris Noe, the sports director and transfer manager of Chelsea. Joris Noe said he was in Madrid, Spain, and had already met with Atletico Madrid's captain, Fernando Torres, and his agent.

The fact that an official from Chelsea could meet with Torres privately meant that Atletico Madrid had already agreed to Chelsea's offer.

"Great news!" Joe Wanxian was excited. First, he had signed the English Golden Boy, Michael Owen, and now the Spanish Golden Boy, Fernando Torres. No wonder people said he was gay! But they didn't understand that the more attractive a player, the higher the image rights and transfer fees!

Joris Noe said cautiously, "Mr. Wanxian, but... Torres doesn't seem willing to join Chelsea..."

"What? How is that possible?" Joe Wanxian's voice rose in disbelief, "Didn't you tell him that I, Joe Wanxian, specifically requested his transfer?"

Joris Noe replied, "I did, but he doesn't want to leave the team in the winter, as it would affect the club's performance. He doesn't want to let down Atletico Madrid's fans..."

Joe Wanxian sighed in frustration. This Torres, so many concerns!

But after some thought, he sensed something. This was probably not Torres' true intention but a directive from Atletico Madrid's management or the coach. They intended to use Torres' loyalty to the club to maximize their profit from the transfer.

Atletico Madrid always aimed for the highest profit from top players, whether it was Torres, Aguero, Falcao, or Diego Costa...

Joe Wanxian thought for a moment and said, "This is easy to solve. Gudjohnsen has big ambitions and wouldn't want to join Atletico Madrid. Hmm... how about this: tell Atletico's officials that I'll loan the Finnish striker Forsell to them for free in the winter. That should solve the problem with Torres!"

"Ah? Loan Forsell too?" Joris Noe was shocked, "Mr. Wanxian, Barcelona has already made an offer for Gudjohnsen. If Forsell leaves, our already thin attacking lineup will be even more depleted..."

"Stuck in your ways. If we're short, we can always buy more," Joe Wanxian rolled his eyes, "Forsell will definitely leave the team next summer anyway, so it doesn't matter if he leaves this winter. As for new signings... we'll discuss that when I get back!"

After hanging up, Joe Wanxian fell into deep thought.

Introducing Torres to the team, along with Owen, would create intense competition. Adding another striker would only be a substitute role. If he continued to sign top-tier players like Owen, Rooney, and Torres, it would be a waste of talent. No matter how good a player, without playing time, they wouldn't grow.

So, who else could he sign to fill the gap left by Forsell? A substitute, a super substitute...

As he thought, a name came to mind.

In the 2008 European Championship, this person played a super substitute role, scoring two goals against Greece and Russia. A year later, in the third-place playoff of the Confederations Cup, Spain was trailing 1-2 to South Africa. He came on as a substitute and scored two goals in two minutes, helping Spain win 3-2 and secure third place in the tournament!

At 29, he transferred from Spain to Turkey for Atletico Madrid, with a transfer fee of 17.5 million euros!

Yes, his name is Guiza! He is currently playing in the Spanish second division for Murcia. The transfer fee? Probably no more than 1 million euros...

"Ha ha..." Joe Wanxian suddenly felt like laughing out loud, as another profitable transfer deal formed in his mind.