Chapter 157: Real Madrid President's Show of Goodwill After Lin Feng dealt with the reporters using the formulaic answers taught by the press officer, he finally managed to squeeze out of the crowd with great effort. But after arriving at the training ground, teammates came over curiously and asked: "Lin, are you really going to leave the team?" "Really joining Real Madrid?" "Are you back here to pack your things now?" Lin Feng was completely speechless. It was fine if the reporters were just making groundless accusations. Why are you guys here to make trouble? But looking at the looks of these guys, they seem to take it seriously. So Lin Feng had to respond positively to completely dispel the doubts in his teammates' minds: "Who said I joined Real Madrid? That's not true. It was a topic deliberately hyped by reporters for popularity and sales. Don't believe everything you hear!" Seeing that Lin Feng had refuted the rumor, his teammates all breathed a sigh of relief. But some people still asked worriedly: "Are you really not leaving? That's Real Madrid, the best team in the world!"
This sentence expressed everyone's thoughts. If they had received an invitation from Real Madrid, except for Zanetti, who is a die-hard Inter Milan fan, everyone else might have chosen to leave without hesitation! Although they are all wealthy families, there are differences between them. Inter Milan can never be compared with top clubs like Real Madrid! In this era, Real Madrid is the white moonlight of countless players. It is the most sacred, noblest and most desired existence in their hearts! Why are so many players scrambling and trying their best to go to Real Madrid? Because Real Madrid is recognized as the top football club! This has been officially endorsed! In a public poll published by FIFA Magazine on December 2000, 12. Real Madrid was successfully elected as the best club of the century with of the votes, far ahead of the second place Manchester United with %. Therefore, Real Madrid only needs to wave its hand and countless players will come to it voluntarily. The dream of becoming a king is not just talk, but is prevalent in today's football world! "I'm not lying to you. Why would you transfer to Real Madrid now? You don't have any Champions League games to play in, and you're so far behind Barcelona in the league. Are you going to be Messi's foil?" After Lin Feng said this, his teammates believed it 80% of the time. Generally speaking, unless there are special circumstances, big-name players will basically not consider transfers during the winter break. Because according to UEFA's current rules, a player can only represent one team in the Champions League in a season. Lin Feng has already played for Inter Milan, which means he can no longer represent other teams in the Champions League. The Champions League is the league with the highest competitive level and the highest attention in Europe and even the world, and it is very attractive to players. Whether or not a team can play in the Champions League will greatly affect a player's willingness to join a team. One of the reasons why Manchester United has not returned to its peak after a decade of struggle after Ferguson retired is that the Red Devils have been unable to consistently qualify for the Champions League, making it difficult to attract top-level players to join. Arsenal, which has been selling its captain every year, has relied on Wenger's magical power to miraculously maintain its fourth place and get a ticket to the Champions League with almost zero investment in team transfers. Relying on the bonuses from the Champions League and the income from commercial sponsorship brought by participating in the Champions League, the Gunners finally survived the low period of operating with debt due to the construction of a new stadium, laying a solid foundation for their future rise.
…… Although Inter Milan officials and the players themselves have denied the rumors, the outside hype has not stopped. Players and clubs have denied the rumors verbally, but the transfer was finalized at the last minute. Therefore, as long as the transfer window is not closed, the rumors and hype from the outside world will not stop. Especially after the interview of Real Madrid President Florentino was released, the heat of this incident reached its peak: "Yes, we are interested in Lin Feng. He is an excellent young man with unimaginable talent and strength. I look forward to seeing him wearing the white jersey of Real Madrid one day!" Facing the reporter's questioning, Florentino not only did not refute the rumor, but publicly stated that they were really interested in Lin Feng and had a strong desire to sign Lin Feng. As soon as this report came out, public opinion at home and abroad was completely outraged. "Oh my god, this is actually true, Real Madrid really wants to buy Lin Feng!" "Even the president of Real Madrid has made a public statement. Now we have to believe it!" "The image of Lin Feng wearing the white jersey of Real Madrid has automatically appeared in my mind!" "If Lin Feng really joins Real Madrid, what number jersey will he wear?" "Lin Feng wears the No. 8 jersey in both Inter Milan and the Chinese national team, but in Real Madrid, the No. 8 jersey belongs to Baptistita, the attacking midfielder's No. 10 jersey is worn by Robinho, but the No. 11 jersey is still vacant!" "I think since Robinho plays as a winger, let him wear the No. 11 jersey and give the No. 10 jersey to Lin Feng!" …… Before this matter even started, fans had already started imagining what number jersey Lin Feng would wear after joining Real Madrid. Not only did Florentino make a public statement in front of reporters, he also sent someone to contact Lin Feng's agent, Lin Feng's elder brother Lin Feng, privately. There is not much time left before the winter transfer window closes, and there is no time to negotiate the details. In addition, Lin Feng has previously stated that he will not consider a transfer during the winter break. So when faced with Florentino's invitation, Lin Feng politely declined. But Real Madrid didn't care too much about it. The private contact was just to show Real Madrid's sincerity and meet Lin Feng's agent in advance to leave a good impression. When Lin Feng really wants to transfer in the future, Real Madrid may be able to rely on this good impression to win the competition with other clubs. But after contacting Real Madrid, Lin Feng had to admit that the other party was indeed sincere. The matter was of great importance, so he flew to Italy in person to discuss it in detail with his brother. "Real Madrid is willing to spend 4500 million euros in transfer fees and 400 million annual salary to take you away if you are willing to leave this winter!" 4500? Lin Feng was a little surprised after hearing this. This number was half higher than the offer submitted by Real Madrid to Inter Milan. In this way, the offer they submitted to Inter Milan was just to create momentum, and they did not put in their full effort. But this transfer fee probably won't be enough to take him away, because the penalty for breach of contract between Lin Feng and Inter Milan is 8000 million. Inter Milan owner Moratti is not short of money. He has spent hundreds of millions of euros to improve the team's performance.
He finally got an SSR card from a blind box, so he couldn’t sell it easily. If nothing unexpected happens, Real Madrid can only activate the penalty clause and take him away by force. As for the annual salary of 400 million, Lin Feng didn't feel too much about it. Compared to the generous Moratti, Real Madrid's annual salary can only be said to be average. Inter Milan offered him an annual salary of 300 million. Although it is less than that of Real Madrid, when Inter Milan offered him this annual salary, he had never had any experience in the top five leagues and was a pure newcomer. Now, he has proven his worth at Inter Milan. Even if he does not transfer and renews his contract with Inter Milan, his annual salary will definitely be more than 400 million. However, from Real Madrid's perspective, there is really not much room for improvement in this annual salary. The highest paid player in Real Madrid is Ronaldo with 650 million euros. Stars such as Raul, Zidane, Beckham, Casillas and others all have an annual salary of 600 million euros. There are too many big-name stars, which makes Real Madrid’s salary system unhealthy. Except for the top-paid stars, the salaries of the players below are generally not high. Robinho, the Brazilian star who joined Real Madrid last summer, has an annual salary lower than Lin Feng, only 250 million euros. You have to know that his transfer fee is 500 million higher than Lin Feng's, and before the transfer, he was already a Brazilian prodigy, and his fame far exceeded Lin Feng. I can only say that Moratti, the boss, is really generous! …… In the last few days before the transfer deadline, more and more people ran to the outside of Inter Milan’s training base to block Lin Feng. In addition to the reporters who wanted to interview Lin Feng, there were also a large number of Nerazzurri players wearing Inter Milan jerseys. They held slogans and banners to retain Lin Feng, gathered outside the training base, and shouted Lin Feng's name and various words to retain him. Some female fans even cried on the spot, making it seem like a farewell of life and death. The reporters were also eager to watch the fun, so they picked up their cameras and took a lot of photos of the Inter fans, then published their photos in the newspapers to show the outside world: See, we didn’t report it blindly, did we? Inter Milan fans have come out to retain the players! It wasn't just foreign reporters causing trouble. A large number of reporters from far away China also gathered outside Inter Milan's training base. These domestic journalists are not only concerned about Lin Feng's transfer, but also about the reactions of European football, fans of both teams, and their fellow journalists. The news of Lin Feng's transfer to Real Madrid has become extremely popular in the country. In recent days, almost all major media have been following and reporting on this incident. This is simply a carnival in the Chinese sports world! Its influence and attention even exceeded the time when Yao Ming entered the NBA as the No. 1 pick. Even Liu Feiren, who was competing in Europe, expressed his curiosity about this matter when he was interviewed by reporters: "Is Lin Feng really going to join Real Madrid? Can't he stay at Inter Milan and accompany Adriano to conquer the world?" Liu Xiang is a fan of the Brazilian team, and his favorite player on the Brazilian team is Adriano. Influenced by this, he occasionally takes time to watch Inter Milan's games in his spare time. With Lin Feng joining Inter Milan this season, Liu Xiang has watched significantly more Serie A games.
Recently, I have even reached the point where I cannot miss any show. Even if I cannot watch the live broadcast, I will watch the recorded show to satisfy my craving. Before he knew it, he, like many other football fans in China, had become a fan of Lin Feng. The reason why I like Lin Feng is that he is my compatriot and I feel a natural sense of closeness towards him. Secondly, Lin Feng’s strength is indeed strong. Even in the Inter Milan team full of stars, he stands out. Therefore, Liu Xiang was particularly concerned about Lin Feng's whereabouts. When the CCTV reporter conveyed Liu Xiang's question to Lin Feng, Lin Feng couldn't help laughing: "Haha, tell Brother Xiang to relax. I'm not going anywhere. I'll play for Inter Milan!" To be honest, Lin Feng never expected that Liu Xiang was also his fan. After all, the other party is now the number one in the domestic sports world, and his influence and status in the country are one level higher than Lin Feng's current level. The most terrifying thing is that Liu Xiang's condition is still improving. If history does not change, he will break the 7-year-old record in the men's 110-meter hurdles in July this year. This is definitely the most glorious period in the history of Chinese track and field! It’s a pity that injuries ruined everything, leaving him with the biggest regret at the Beijing Olympics. It would be great if we could help him avoid this tragedy and realize his dream. Thinking of this, Lin Feng couldn't help but ask: "By the way, Brother Li, do you have Brother Xiang's phone number?" Li Hong nodded: "Yes, do you want it? I'll send it to you!" After saying that, he edited the text message and sent Liu Xiang's phone number to Lin Feng. "Thank you, Brother Li. I'll treat you guys to dinner later!" …… After getting Liu Xiang's phone number, Lin Feng was afraid that it would be inconvenient for the other party to answer the call, so he just edited a text message to say hello to the other party. Unexpectedly, not long after the text message was sent, the other party called. "Hello, is this Lin Feng? I'm Liu Xiang!" "Hello Brother Xiang, I'm Lin Feng!" "Good boy, I finally caught you. You don't know how many people I asked, but they all said they didn't have your phone number. It was really not easy to find you!" Lin Feng spent a relatively short period of time in the country and has basically lived in Europe. Therefore, he didn't have much contact with those people in the domestic sports circle. It was indeed not easy for Liu Xiang to find Lin Feng's contact information through his domestic interpersonal network. "Brother Xiang, do you have something to talk to me about?" Lin Feng was a little surprised. From what the other party said, it seemed that he had been looking for him for a long time. So there must be something wrong, right? "It's nothing big. I just want to get an account with you and make myself familiar with you so that I can get free tickets from you later!"
"Haha, Brother Xiang, when are you coming to watch the game? Just let me know in advance and I will definitely prepare the tickets for you!" The club usually provides players with some free tickets. As long as they give a heads up in advance, they can get them for free without having to pay for them. Liu Xiang said that he got Lin Feng for free, but in fact Lin Feng himself didn't spend any money. "Really? I'm welcome. Do you have tickets for the match on the 2nd? If you do, could you please leave two for me? I'm on my way to Meazza to watch the match!" Although Liu Xiang has watched so many Inter Milan games on TV, he has never been to the Meazza Stadium to watch a game live. It just so happens that I have finished the competition and am preparing to return home, so I plan to use this opportunity to fulfill this wish. …… February 2, Meazza Stadium. In the second leg of the Italian Cup quarter-finals, Inter Milan played against Lazio at home. Normally, cup games have lower attendances than league games, but this match was an anomaly. More than 70,000 people came to the Meazza Stadium, and the entire stadium was packed. The main reason for this situation is Lin Feng himself. Although Lin Feng had repeatedly denied the rumors that he would not leave Inter Milan, all kinds of rumors and hearsay from the outside world never stopped before the transfer period ended. The best way to dispel the rumor is for Lin Feng to appear on the field wearing Inter Milan's jersey. The most recent game is the cup match on the 2nd. Therefore, this ordinary cup match has received unprecedented attention. Countless fans flocked to the stadium, wanting to see with their own eyes whether their core players were still in the team. Lin Feng did not disappoint them. During the pre-match warm-up session, when Lin Feng appeared, there was warm applause and cheers from the audience. Seeing so many fans in the stands holding Lin Feng’s portraits, shouting his name, cheering for him and singing for him. All this shocked Liu Feiren, who was watching the game in person for the first time! It turns out that this kid has such a big influence in Inter Milan? (End of this chapter)