Chapter 15

Lin Sen lay comfortably on the large bed, covered only by a thin blanket. It was nearing May, and the temperature in Madrid had finally started to rise. The evenings were the coolest time of the day. Lin Sen's residence was an ordinary apartment near the Atletico Madrid headquarters. The house wasn't the best, but it was convenient for transportation, and the surroundings were nice and quiet, perfect for deep thoughts.

To outsiders, being a head coach was a glamorous profession. One could stand elegantly on the sidelines, gracefully directing the game, or passionately cheer for victory. It was a profession that seemed to embody the pinnacle of coolness. However, in Lin Sen's eyes, who was already beginning to miss his days as a team doctor, this profession was slowly turning into one that embodied the pinnacle of masochism. Without mentioning other things, just to understand the next opponent, Lin Sen had forced himself to watch almost all of Villarreal's matches this season, and he watched every minute of the 90-minute matches, from the club to his residence, from day to night, watching whenever he had time. Now, whenever he saw something yellow, he felt as if the match had already started.

Dealing with Maxi was the first major challenge Lin Sen faced after taking over Atletico Madrid. What made him feel a bit amused and frustrated was that this was thanks to Maxi not following his instructions in the previous match. The next match would be Lin Sen's first true match in charge of Atletico Madrid. In the afternoon, Lin Sen called Juanes and informed him that he would be bringing three players from the youth team into the match roster.

Kamach, Koke, and De Gea—Lin Sen was ready to fulfill his promise.

Perhaps, for those three young men, this was a dream come true?

A smile appeared at the corner of Lin Sen's mouth, but immediately, he rolled off the bed with a speed that was almost imperceptible, followed by a loud and sharp sound of shattering glass that tore through the night's tranquility. The hard object that broke the glass, with its remaining momentum, knocked over the only piece of porcelain in the room, shattering it to pieces. Then, several dark shadows were thrown in, smashing the already broken glass even more, and the cups, bottles, and wall paintings in the room were also destroyed one after another...

What was going on?

The sudden incident left Lin Sen a bit dazed. Had the aliens finally started attacking Earth? Hiding under the bed, Lin Sen didn't dare to stand up immediately. After a few minutes of silence, he heard some commotion outside. Only then did he crawl out from under the bed and walk to the broken sliding window to look outside.

The lights in the neighbors' houses were already on, illuminating the area like daylight.

Facing the broken sliding window, several large banners were hung haphazardly, each with slogans written in both languages.

"Get out of Atletico Madrid!"

"You are a coward! You don't deserve to coach Atletico!"

"Atletico Madrid doesn't need a coach from a football desert!!"

...

The smooth Latin letters and the wobbly Chinese characters, with some grammatical errors when translated, clearly showed the writer's emotions, especially the skillful and vigorous use of exclamation marks. Lin Sen's expression changed as he turned to look at the objects that had been thrown into his room. He picked up a hard object near his feet and examined it.

It was a stone, wrapped in cloth. Only the size of a fist.

These bastards still had some conscience, knowing to wrap it in cloth, clearly more of a warning than an attack.

Needless to say, the attackers were Atletico Madrid fans.

They had even specifically investigated his residence? Lin Sen's lips twitched, and his feelings were complex.

Anger seemed to be the appropriate emotion for Lin Sen at this moment, but more than that, it was a sense of helpless disappointment. He had finally entered the range of fan attacks. The poor performance of Atletico Madrid had already caused dissatisfaction among the fans, which was no longer news. Fans, who viewed the team as a faith, had the right to choose their own way to vent their anger, whether it was blocking the team bus, cursing the club's management, or criticizing the players for not performing well. These were all ways to vent, and not just Lin Sen, even Atletico Madrid, whose headquarters had been attacked several times, had no way to deal with it.

You can't force a bull to drink water by holding its head down; everything should be left to nature. In front of angry fans, excessive promises and guarantees were just meaningless excuses. Now, Atletico Madrid had simply closed its mouth, and both the chairman and the manager subconsciously avoided the issue of the fans. The best way to make the fans quiet was for the team to win. Once Atletico Madrid started winning, everything would naturally fall into place.

But what was this today?

You don't have the ability to attack the houses of the club's executives in the wealthy areas, so you come to trouble a coach living in a residential area?

The police arrived quickly. They saw the banners and soon found Lin Sen.

The subsequent events became routine, but after the police left, Lin Sen felt that the officer who questioned him was likely a Real Madrid fan, as his eyes seemed to have a gleam of schadenfreude.

---

As it turned out, Lin Sen's guess was correct. The officer was indeed a Real Madrid fan. The news of the Atletico Madrid interim coach's residence being attacked by fans appeared in the major newspapers the next day.

"When I was patrolling nearby, I received the alarm and rushed over immediately, but the troublemakers had already fled, leaving only the banners. That's when I found out that the Atletico Madrid coach, Lin, lived there. A piece of glass in his residence was broken, but fortunately, he was not injured. When we arrived, Lin was clearly too scared to speak..."

Nonsense! More nonsense! Damn, in this era, no profession has any sense of professional ethics.

Looking at the police interview in the newspaper, Lin Sen shook his head helplessly. However, his troubles didn't end there. Two Chinese journalists who had traveled a long distance were waiting to interview him. Although Lin Sen didn't think they were there because of last night's incident, it was precisely at this time.

"Hello, Mr. Lin, I am Zhou Feng from CCTV, and this is my colleague, Su Tong. We are very grateful that you agreed to our interview." The speaker was a middle-aged man, around forty, with a receding hairline, but his expression was very kind, and his words were natural and friendly, indicating that he had dealt with many celebrities. In comparison, the young man named Su Tong was much less experienced.

Lin Sen was sizing them up, and Zhou Feng was doing the same to Lin Sen.

As a well-known media figure in China, Zhou Feng had interviewed many celebrities, but a football coach, especially a Chinese coach leading a top European league team, was a first. However, this wasn't what he was most curious about. What he was most curious about was that Lin Sen taking over Atletico Madrid, a young Chinese coach leading a top European team, was a bombshell for Chinese football, which was in its darkest era. However, in China, it seemed that all the media were downplaying the event, even on the most unrestricted online platforms, discussions about Lin Sen were mostly on informal fan forums. This was abnormal, and Zhou Feng was very curious about Lin Sen's identity. The fact that this long-overdue interview was finally happening now confirmed his suspicions. His boss's serious expression before he left made him realize that this would not be a routine interview.

Don't ask what you shouldn't ask. Zhou Feng sighed, knowing that this was the golden rule for journalists.

This wasn't my choice... Lin Sen silently complained about the press officer, Karlping, who, after the last press conference, didn't even give him a chance to refuse.

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, the interview quickly got to the point. During this time, Lin Sen had to correct the events of the previous night again.

"It's clear that Atletico Madrid's fans are not very friendly towards you. However, we all know that when you took over the team, the team's condition was not good. Logically, the fans should understand your situation. Do you think your personal identity plays a role in this?" Zhou Feng's question was tactful, but it was still a common topic.

"I don't think it's a matter of degree," Lin Sen shook his head. "For example, if the team started winning as soon as I took over, do you think they would care about my identity? No, they wouldn't. Whether I was a team doctor or a nobody, they wouldn't care. So, this isn't an issue of identity; it's ultimately about results. Identity is just an excuse."

"What about the team's internal situation? I know that some things happened recently."

"You mean the refusal to play," Zhou Feng didn't say it bluntly, perhaps to save Lin Sen's face, but Lin Sen said it calmly. "That wasn't a pleasant event, but it's in the past. The team is now moving in a good direction, and from the next match, I won't give up any game."

"…Do you mean…" Zhou Feng's heart stirred, "the first two matches were not part of your plan?"

"No," Lin Sen smiled. "All matches are part of the plan."

Giving up a match doesn't mean it's outside the plan.

"May I ask, now that the outside world believes you signed a short-term contract with Atletico Madrid, can you reveal any details of the contract? For example…" Zhou Feng's eyes were fixed on Lin Sen, "the conditions for renewal?"

"Yes!" Lin Sen's quick response surprised Zhou Feng, but he soon smiled bitterly.

"Win the league championship." Lin Sen laughed heartily.

"Is it really impossible?" Zhou Feng persisted, "You know, this is something the fans in China are particularly concerned about. They are very happy to see a Chinese person in European football, even if not on the field."

Lin Sen smiled. He believed Zhou Feng. Not just the fans in China, even he himself would be happy to see a few familiar faces on the field. He didn't doubt that he would receive attention from Chinese fans, but Chinese fans were not Atletico Madrid fans and couldn't save him from his current predicament.

"In today's football, contracts are not very binding. As I said before, results are everything. I thank everyone who supports me, but in this matter, it's not entirely up to me."

In this matter, Lin Sen was not hiding anything. The contract he signed with Serez was indeed a short-term one with no additional clauses. The statement about the possibility of renewal was just empty words. But Lin Sen didn't care; the contract with Serez was just the beginning of a path, and he was confident that it would lead to a bright future.

"Will you go back to being a team doctor?"

"No!"

"Continue being a coach?"

"Yes! A great coach!"

Lin Sen's sudden declaration of ambition surprised Zhou Feng.