Chapter 36

Anything that carries the last two characters "final" or "last" always seems particularly tragic and melancholic. Lin Sen was not willing to call today's training session the "last training session." At the very least, he had to add the premise "at Atletico Madrid." However, despite his attempts to make today's training as mundane as usual, everyone from the coach to the players, even the security guards, looked at him with a gaze that seemed like they were attending a farewell party, which made Lin Sen feel depressed and somewhat helpless.

Tomorrow will be the last round of the league this season, with Atletico Madrid traveling to the away ground to face Santander. After the match, although the contract still has a few days left, Lin Sen can be considered to have effectively ended his role as the head coach of Atletico Madrid. The rest will be up to the new coach, Luis Aragonés.

The training content the day before the match generally does not involve physical aspects and is mainly focused on tactical training. Lin Sen has already finalized the starting lineup for tomorrow. The biggest highlight is that Aguero has finally made it into the starting lineup. In addition, Motta will also start, and the three young players who started in the last match will continue to get opportunities. The starting lineup is now basically set.

Santander has performed well this season, ranking sixth in the league and securing a place in the UEFA Cup. For both teams, this match is essentially a "friendly" game, with no reason to go all out.

Aguero, dressed in green, was clearly very excited about his upcoming start. Motta, who had already said his goodbyes, had a calm and transparent demeanor, unlike a player about to leave. The other players displayed a variety of emotions, some already thinking about their vacations, while others, like those who need to play in the European Cup, such as Antonio López, were focused on maintaining their form.

Lin Sen's departure was as routine for most players as a teammate leaving. Professional football is like this: a fixed camp with a constant flow of players. Today you might be saying goodbye to someone, and tomorrow it could be you. There's no room for too much sentiment.

Noticing that the few young players he had promoted to the first team were not in good spirits, Lin Sen found some solace. Apart from Camañjo, who was more stable, De Gea and Koke were clearly not in high spirits, even showing a trend towards yellow, which undoubtedly represented disappointment. Lin Sen didn't dare to interpret it as reluctance, but the yellow color was undeniable.

At the end of the training, Lin Sen did not make any touching farewell speech. He simply shook hands with each player, including those with whom he had conflicts, like Simao and Reyes, and Raul García, who was reportedly unhappy about being substituted in the last match. Finally, it was the three young players. In fact, Lin Sen had some doubts about promoting these three. Promoting them to the first team was not a problem, but playing in matches required careful consideration. In reality, if he considered the future from the perspective of "poaching," not promoting them would have been better. However, Lin Sen ultimately decided to promote them, and he did so wholeheartedly. From their performances, Camañjo was the best, followed by Koke, with De Gea at the bottom.

Lin Sen was very clear about the trajectories of these three players in the coming years. The saying "a child who shows early promise may not necessarily excel as an adult" is particularly apt in football. Once a young player performs well, the media always likes to create topics like "the second coming of someone." Without mentioning others, there have been dozens of "successors" to Maradona, the most recent being Aguero, the son-in-law of the Ball King. Camañjo, who is currently performing the best, will have the most challenging path among the three, while De Gea will have a smoother journey, partly due to his position and partly because he has potential.

However, potential, like hope, is always just talk until it is realized. If Lin Sen could stay, he could address their weaknesses, but now, he is uncertain about the opportunities the three young players will have after he leaves. Given Aragonés' character, Camañjo might have a more optimistic future, while De Gea and Koke will likely return to the youth team to wait for their chances. Lin Sen wanted to give the three young players some parting advice, but after a long silence, he decided to keep it simple and gave each of them a piece of advice.

For Camañjo, who was initially the most promising but gradually lost his shine, off-field factors were a significant reason for his eventual departure from Atletico Madrid. Maintaining focus on football will be key to whether Camañjo becomes the player Lin Sen remembers. So, Lin Sen told Camañjo to always stay focused.

For De Gea, the goalkeeper position has some innate qualities, but more importantly, it requires a solid foundation. In Lin Sen's memory, De Gea's biggest weakness was dealing with long shots and high balls, a common issue among La Liga goalkeepers due to the league's emphasis on ground play. So, Lin Sen advised De Gea to build a strong foundation.

For Koke, Lin Sen's advice was simply: patience. Among the three, Koke was his favorite. This young player, if he develops without deviation, will be a perfect midfielder in Lin Sen's mind, and perhaps in many coaches' minds. He has the tenacity to play from the first to the 90th minute, the versatility to play in almost any attacking position, and, most importantly, a high football IQ, evident from his ability to judge opportunities.

Seeing the three young players in a daze, Lin Sen knew his words, though brief, were not entirely clear to them. However, he did not intend to elaborate. Good advice doesn't need to be repeated. Further explanation would turn it into a lecture, and few young people enjoy being lectured. Those who understand will eventually understand, and those who don't will remain indifferent.

Finally, Lin Sen decided to see someone, or rather, this person wanted to see him.

---

Compared to the simple, or perhaps spartan, coach's office, the chairman's office was undoubtedly luxurious. The warm-toned walls were adorned with paintings whose names Lin Sen couldn't identify. A set of brown leather sofas and a row of bookshelves made the office look much more upscale than his own. On one side, there was even a small bar, and behind it, a wine cabinet filled with various bottles.

When Lin Sen entered the room, Cerezo, who seemed to be working, warmly invited him to sit down and asked if he wanted a drink. After Lin Sen said it didn't matter, Cerezo poured two glasses of red wine and walked over.

"Training is over?" Cerezo asked casually, handing Lin Sen a glass of wine.

"Yes, it's over," Lin Sen replied naturally, taking the glass.

"What are your plans?" Cerezo sat down on the sofa and asked a question Lin Sen had to answer several times a day recently.

"I plan to take over from Schuster," Lin Sen smiled and said a rather rebellious statement.

Bernd Schuster, who had played for Atletico Madrid in his playing days, was currently the head coach of their arch-rivals, Real Madrid, and had just led the team to the league title, surpassing Barcelona. However, Lin Sen knew Schuster wouldn't have it easy next season. For Cerezo, Lin Sen's words were just a joke, and could only be a joke. If it were the old Hill, Lin Sen would have been fired several times over for such a statement. But Cerezo was different; the rivalry was for the fans, and Real Madrid was just a club with a low possibility of cooperation.

Cerezo gently swirled the red liquid in his glass, not taking the slight hint of resentment in Lin Sen's words seriously, and maintained a smile.

This was the demeanor a chairman of Atletico Madrid should have.

Resentment? No problem, it's understandable. Complaints? No problem, they can be laughed off. However, neither resentment nor complaints can be conditions. This was what Cerezo found most satisfying about Lin Sen. In public, Lin Sen never expressed personal opinions about his departure, and the word he used most often was "contract."

This was the key. It was the contract that made Lin Sen the interim head coach of Atletico Madrid, not emotions, relationships, or resentment.

Because of this, Cerezo arranged this meeting today. Otherwise, a temporary amateur coach with a contract about to expire would have no significant difference whether he met or not.

"I have a proposal," Cerezo said calmly. "If you don't plan to leave the football industry, you might consider it."

Lin Sen remained noncommittal, seemingly waiting for Cerezo to continue.

"Assistant coach," Cerezo finally got to the point.

Assistant coach?

Lin Sen was taken aback. This was a novel idea. But upon reflection, Cerezo's proposal made sense. Lin Sen could not go back to being a team doctor, and Atletico Madrid had already signed Aragonés. It seemed that Lin Sen had no other choice but to leave. However, his background gave him more flexibility than a typical head coach. A typical head coach, out of pride, would never accept a demotion to an assistant coach, preferring to "die standing rather than live kneeling." But Lin Sen was different. His tenure as head coach was less than two months, and if he became an assistant coach next season, no one would think it was a loss of face.

Of course, the more important reason Cerezo proposed this was that during Lin Sen's short time as head coach, he brought some changes to Atletico Madrid that, while not immediately obvious, were significant enough to catch Cerezo's attention.