The first match of the New Year was the FA Cup third round. Cambridge United drew Histon from the National League, so Huang Hao gave everyone a rare few days off.
Instead of enjoying the holiday like the players, Huang Hao went to the office to deal with the work a chairman needed to complete.
Soon, Adams knocked on Huang Hao's door. Huang Hao was quite surprised by his arrival.
"Did you find another target for me?"
Huang Hao asked with a smile, looking at the documents in Adams's hand.
"Uh, no, but you might want to take a look at these, Boss."
With that, Adams handed a few pages of paper to Qiao Zhuoyan.
They were several purchase offers!
Huang Hao was a little surprised and read through them one by one.
Enzo Robise, 500,000?
Gil Bennett, 1,000,000?
Longolo, 350,000?
Sager, 800,000?
Edin Dzeko???
When Huang Hao saw the last contract, his heart skipped a beat!
It's not about thieves stealing, it's about thieves coveting! Damn it! Dzeko just started performing, and the offers came in!
Real Madrid, Arsenal, Manchester City, and Sampdoria all submitted bids for Dzeko. Real Madrid offered 15 million, Arsenal 8 million, Manchester City 11 million, and Sampdoria 6 million pounds.
Huang Hao immediately shook his head.
"Adams, reject them all! Not for sale!"
Adams did not rush to leave after hearing Huang Hao's decision.
"Is there a problem?"
Huang Hao saw Adams's expression and knew things were not that simple.
"Uh, Boss, Longolo still hasn't signed the contract extension..."
"Also, Enzo has also approached me..." Huang Hao rubbed his chin. Indeed, things were a bit tricky.
This season, Longolo was behind Sterri and Vida, serving as the team's third-choice backup defender.
Huang Hao was not entirely satisfied with this often-confused fellow, but a price of 350,000 pounds was clearly taking advantage of the situation!
"Why hasn't he renewed?"
"He hopes we can offer a contract with a weekly salary of 5,000 pounds, and the term is only two years."
"Lovren's current contract is 3,800 pounds."
Adams brought up Lovren, clearly hoping Huang Hao would make a comparison.
"Okay, let him go."
If it weren't for the protection of local clubs in the English League, Longolo could theoretically have signed a pre-contract with any team by now.
However, if a local club wanted to acquire Longolo, they would have to wait until the end of May. To avoid further complications, Preston was still willing to pay 350,000 pounds to acquire Longolo early.
Although the salaries of Cambridge United players significantly increased after promotion to the EFL Championship, 5,000 pounds would clearly disrupt the team's wage structure.
After all, he was a veteran who had fought alongside Huang Hao for three years. Huang Hao was lenient and told Adams that if a contract extension could not be finalized, he would agree to the transfer, but the price should be 400,000.
As for Enzo Robise, this young player's strengths and weaknesses were very obvious. As the season progressed, his lack of height and physicality gradually relegated him to a substitute player.
Facing an offer from Premier League team Middlesbrough, Enzo was clearly tempted.
He hadn't even secured a starting spot in the EFL Championship, and Huang Hao could almost foresee Robise's time at Middlesbrough, but those words were no longer very important.
"Tell them that Robise is our rising star. Don't even think about that price."
Adams naturally understood the meaning of Huang Hao's "rising star." This time, he didn't hesitate, nodded, and prepared to leave.
Sager had always been Cambridge United's captain. After his last serious injury, he hadn't fully recovered, and with the growth of young players in the team, Sager hadn't started this season and was demoted to third captain. It was understandable that he wanted to find a team where he could play.
This time, League One team Southend United offered 800,000, which showed their sincerity.
"Ask Sager again. If he agrees, we can let him go."
This season, Dzeko continued to act as a pivot on the frontline, capable of both passing and shooting. Huang Hao hoped to keep him to build his Cambridge United.
"Why hasn't he renewed?"
"He wants to play for a big club."
Huang Hao had previously signed a contract with Dzeko until 2010. To prevent poaching, Huang Hao specifically asked Adams to discuss a contract extension with Dzeko, but he didn't expect it to be rejected.
Suddenly, he seemed to remember something else and turned to look at Huang Hao.
"Boss, what about Bennett here...?"
"Not for sale! Not for sale!"
Adams nodded emphatically and left Huang Hao's office.
Unexpectedly, Adams came to Huang Hao's office again in the afternoon.
Huang Hao looked at Adams, his eyes wide.
Clearly, as the team's director, Adams wouldn't seek Huang Hao's opinion for a small matter.
"Boss, Huddersfield, Real Madrid, Arsenal, and Manchester City have all submitted second bids."
"Didn't I tell you? Not for sale! Not for sale!"
Huang Hao was a little impatient and gave the answer directly without waiting for Adams to finish.
Adams hesitated, thought for a moment, and then bravely continued:
"Huddersfield's offer for Bennett has directly increased to 3 million pounds. Real Madrid's bid for Dzeko has gone up to 16 million, Arsenal's to 8.5 million, and Manchester City's to 13 million."
Huang Hao, who had been looking down at the documents, suddenly looked up at Adams!
Their gazes met, and Adams nodded emphatically, confirming that he hadn't misspoken.
This time, Huang Hao didn't give Adams a straightforward answer.
Huang Hao slowly put down the offer contracts, his eyes slightly closed, his left hand on his forehead, and his right index finger constantly tapping the table.
Clearly, 3 million pounds was already a very sincere offer.
Although for a Premier League team like Huddersfield, this was just a drop in the ocean, paying this amount for a 20-year-old EFL Championship youngster precisely demonstrated Bennett's value.
Adams hesitated to speak. He wondered if Huang Hao was taking too long to think and had fallen asleep...
After a moment of thought, Huang Hao finally opened his eyes.
"Okay, agree to Huddersfield's offer. As for Edin, I'll talk to him."
Huang Hao pulled Li Jianqin to Dzeko's dormitory.
"You know several teams are interested in you, right?"
Huang Hao didn't beat around the bush and went straight to the transfer matter.
"I know. My agent told me."
Dzeko didn't hide anything.
Huang Hao heard Dzeko's affirmative answer, didn't continue speaking, and exchanged glances with Li Jianqin.
"Boss, I really like Cambridge United. This is where my professional career truly began."
Huang Hao patiently listened to Dzeko continue, not interrupting him.
What if what followed wasn't "but"?
"But."
Huang Hao's heart sank!
Sure enough, everything was still different from what he had imagined.
"The reason I agreed to Real Madrid, Manchester City, and them submitting offers to the club is because they promised to offer a transfer fee that matches my value."
After speaking, Dzeko grinned.
"They basically all offered prices above 10 million pounds. To be honest, I was really tempted!"
When Huang Hao stated the numbers, Dzeko was also startled!
"It seems they weren't lying."
Huang Hao took a deep breath. "Edin, I can promise you that as long as you don't want to leave, I will never lose you because of money."
Dzeko put away his smile and said seriously, "Boss brought me from Teplice to England, and he immediately gave me a starting position. My rapid growth is all thanks to Boss's careful cultivation. I believe Boss can take us to the Premier League. I believe Boss, you can also take us to the Europe stage to achieve great things."
"But they are Real Madrid, Arsenal! I don't think any player can refuse the call of Real Madrid, Barça, Milan, or Bayern. And my agent told me that the weekly salary starts at least at 30,000. At Cambridge United, how much do I get? 4,200? I was the top scorer in League Two and League One, and currently third in the EFL Championship. Is that only worth 4,200?"
Dzeko's emotions were a bit agitated.
Huang Hao and Li Jianqin exchanged glances, seeing the helplessness in each other. "Edin, these words don't sound like something a 20-year-old would say. You also know that I'm just a poor boy, and Li Jianqin's family isn't a rich one either."
"Acquiring Cambridge United before was also by chance, and Cambridge United is still paying off the debts of the previous owner, so we can't offer high-value contracts."
"Since you've made up your mind to leave, I won't be the bad guy. We've been master and disciple, let's part amicably. Which club do you prefer?"
Dzeko thought for a moment, "Real Madrid."
Huang Hao straightened his collar. "When I came, I also inquired about the motives of these clubs. I'll tell you for your reference, hoping you won't regret today's decision later."
"Real Madrid needs a striker because van Nistelrooy is injured. They looked at you and Huntelaar. You can definitely play at Real Madrid, but I advise you, do you have the confidence to beat a healthy van Nistelrooy? Also, with Florentino's superstar policy, it will be very difficult for you to establish yourself."
"Arsenal is a 'fake' big club. They are heavily in debt from building their stadium, so they struggle to achieve good results in the League due to a lack of good players."
"Although Manchester City is not a big club, the Middle Eastern tycoons have arrived. Their ambitions are huge, and they want to buy many players. The advantage is that you can negotiate an ideal salary, but the disadvantage is high player and coach turnover. If you don't perform well, you can easily be sidelined."
"I've told you my views on all three. When you've thought it through, tell me which one you want to go to."
After speaking, Huang Hao revealed his signature mischievous smile again.
On January 4th, in the FA Cup third round, Huang Hao fielded an entirely reserve squad, and ultimately Gotze assisted two goals, securing a 2-1 victory over home team Histon.
When Middlesbrough raised their offer to 750,000 pounds, Adams received authorization from Huang Hao and agreed to the transfer.
As Huang Hao had expected, Robise, who enthusiastically joined Middlesbrough, was directly loaned by the club to Saint-Étienne in the French League Two before he even reported to Middlesbrough.
Perhaps Robise would feel more comfortable returning to his familiar French League Two.
After some negotiations, Longolo still did not agree to the contract extension offered by Cambridge United, and Adams quickly completed the deal with Preston. After all, if this matter dragged on, Cambridge United was destined to get nothing. Even mosquito legs are meat, and for Cambridge United, whose finances were still tight, every income could not be ignored.
Ultimately, Cambridge United agreed to Southend United's 800,000 acquisition of Sager, Bennett's 3 million move to Huddersfield, and sold Dzeko to Real Madrid for 14 million pounds.