Starting With Real Madrid

Before the European Championship ended, Gao Shen had already received a call from Valdano.

The technical director of Real Madrid wasn't questioning anything profound, just raising some concerns because the board did have some doubts.

Specifically, the players Gao Shen had placed on the transfer list had all performed exceptionally well.

Coentrão, Khedira were all selected in the 23-man squad for the Team of the Tournament at the European Championship.

Among them Khedira received high praise.

Beckenbauer and Sammer from Bayern even specifically mentioned Khedira, saying he was the most dominant and commanding midfielder in European football at the moment, and they were vaguely expressing interest in bringing him back.

"That's great. He'll fetch a good price," Gao Shen said with a smile.

"It's not about the money, Gao," Valdano said with a wry smile over the phone.

"Right now, they're playing well, but Toni Kroos has been average. Some say he was even the worst player in the German national team. You see, this…"

Gao Shen understood exactly what Valdano meant.

Simply put, this kind of operation was bound to raise suspicion.

You're selling the best player of the Euros and bringing in the worst performer? What kind of logic is that?

And this isn't just the view of a few people, but of almost everyone.

That's why the value of players who shine at major tournaments often skyrockets.

Sometimes to the point of being ridiculous.

"Let me tell you, Jorge, just like Modrić's situation at Tottenham, I can say with certainty that both the German national team and Bayern Munich are misusing Toni Kroos."

When Gao Shen said this, it came across as incredibly arrogant, like he was the only clear-headed and intelligent person in the world, while everyone else was a fool.

But it was the truth.

Can Toni Kroos really play as a No. 10?

Putting him there is doing him a disservice.

"I can't explain it, Jorge," Gao Shen sighed.

Valdano nodded, "I understand, Gao. Don't worry, we believe in you!"

...

Beckenbauer and Sammer's earlier comments were more of a goodwill gesture, signaling to Real Madrid that they valued Khedira.

Want Toni Kroos?

Sure, trade him for Khedira!

Right now, the market value of both players is about the same. After Khedira's brilliant performance at the European Championship, his value might even be slightly higher than Kroos.

But Real Madrid's offer this time was to swap Khedira for Toni Kroos.

This offer caused an immediate uproar.

Many Spanish media outlets criticized the move. Khedira had just shone in the European Championship, and now Real Madrid wanted to sell him?

And not just that, they were selling him to bring in Toni Kroos, who had performed poorly at the Euros?

Wasn't that absurd?

Even Alfredo, the editor-in-chief of AS, said the deal was incomprehensible.

"I don't know whether this decision came from the technical team or the higher-ups, but if Real Madrid really likes Toni Kroos, they could've just bought the midfielder outright instead of trading away Khedira, our best player. No matter how you look at it, this is a losing deal."

But no one from Real Madrid stepped forward to clarify.

The only person to speak up was Florentino. At an event, when interviewed, he smiled and said he had faith in the technical team's choices.

"We have the best head coach and the most professional team in the world. I trust them!"

But the media and fans remained unconvinced.

If Gao Shen had come forward, things might've looked better, given his popularity.

But to avoid further complications, Real Madrid didn't let Gao Shen be involved in the transfer dealings.

The reason was simple. If Gao Shen wanted to sign a player, that player's value would immediately shoot up. How would they afford him then?

Take Valencia's left-back, Alba, for example.

After Real Madrid made an offer to Valencia, Barcelona's pursuit of a left-back suddenly stalled.

Later, Alba's agent publicly said it was Gao Shen who had set his sights on Alba.

Good grief! As soon as Valencia heard that, they halted the transfer immediately.

Once the European Championship began, Alba's performances improved game by game. He eventually helped Spain thrash Italy 4-0 in the final and made the Team of the Tournament.

Now, Alba's value had soared past 10 million euros.

Before the end of the Euros, Barcelona made a new offer to Valencia—25 million euros—more than double the previous bid made before Real Madrid's involvement.

But Valencia stood firm and arrogantly rejected the offer.

Not for sale!

If you want him, pay more. Otherwise, we'll sell him to Real Madrid!

What made it worse was that Real Madrid had publicly stated their intention to buy him.

Outrageous!

Barcelona president Rosell publicly criticized Valencia, accusing the club of going against the player's wishes.

"He clearly wants to come to Barcelona, but you insist on selling him to Real Madrid. What's the point?"

Now that things had escalated, they had no choice but to fulfill their promise, right?

Valencia's stance was also clear: you want him, pay up!

Going against the player's wishes?

How righteous that sounds! But where was your righteousness when you were secretly wooing the player and asking him to pressure the club?

Let's skip the rhetoric. We don't want much, just the same fee you paid for Alves from Sevilla.

Look at Alba's performance at the Euros—he's worth every penny!

In the end, Barcelona gritted their teeth, stomped their feet, and paid up!

Forty million euros. Barcelona once again bought a full-back from Valencia at an astronomical price.

Just two days before Alba signed, Real Madrid announced that they had sold their Portuguese left-back Coentrão to Chelsea for 25 million euros.

Real Madrid fans were furious. They had just sold the best left-back of the European Championship, and now they'd missed out on the best Spanish left-back?

What kind of transfer strategy was this?

What the hell were they thinking?

Why sell players performing well?

Was Real Madrid short on money?

Didn't look like it. They just paid a premium of 20 million euros to sign Courtois from Leeds United.

Some tabloids even started spinning conspiracy theories, speculating about deeper motives behind it all.

Everyone knew Gao Shen was the man behind Leeds United.

Was he using Real Madrid's transfers to secretly fund his own team?

Conspiracy theories were always popular.

After selling Coentrão, Real Madrid announced the player swap—Khedira for Toni Kroos with Bayern Munich.

The German media was thrilled.

We made a big profit!

Look at Toni Kroos' performances at Bayern and at the Euros. Where was the form he showed at the World Cup two years ago?

It seemed like he was declining.

And Khedira?

Just 24 years old, in his prime, the best player at the European Championship, praised by Beckenbauer and Sammer, seen as the future leader of Germany and Bayern. This deal was a steal.

After signing Toni Kroos, Real Madrid announced the signing of Italian midfielder Verratti from Napoli for 25 million euros.

This 19-year-old had already played four seasons for Napoli. Everyone knew he was discovered by Gao Shen, and his performances had attracted widespread attention.

Verratti didn't disappoint. In last season's Serie A, he provided nine assists and played brilliantly. Many hailed him as the new Pirlo, and there had even been calls for him to be selected for the national team.

Now Real Madrid had signed him for 25 million euros, and it seemed like he would be reunited with his mentor at the Bernabéu.

Following Verratti's arrival, the deal in London was also finalized.

Real Madrid successfully signed Luka Modrić from Tottenham Hotspur for 15 million euros, along with Adebayor.

The Croatian midfielder had fallen out with Levy and was criticized by Spurs fans, but he withstood the pressure and finally came to Real Madrid.

At the same time, Real Madrid announced that they had activated the buyback clause for left-back Marcos Alonso, who had been sold to Bolton last season.

Speaking of Marcos Alonso, he came from a true Real Madrid lineage.

His grandfather was a key member of Real Madrid during their five consecutive European Cup wins in the 1950s.

His father also came through Real Madrid's youth system but didn't break into the first team. He went on to play for Racing Santander, then joined Atlético Madrid and Barcelona, becoming a Barça legend.

Marcos Alonso, now 20, was a genuine product of Real Madrid's youth system. He joined at the age of nine and had a brief first-team appearance before being sold to Bolton.

However, like with many of their youth players, Real Madrid included a buyback clause in his transfer. Now, they had activated it and bought him back.

Real Madrid fans were happy about the repurchase—he was, after all, one of their own—but they remained puzzled.

Marcos Alonso hadn't performed exceptionally at Bolton, so why bring him back?

Just because he was a Real Madrid product?

Or was it just to appease the fans?

After signing Marcos Alonso, Real Madrid announced that they had transferred central defender Carvalho to Monaco. The transfer fee wasn't disclosed, but AS reported it was a free transfer.

Altıntop moved to Galatasaray for 3.5 million euros.

Sahin was sold to Premier League side Liverpool for 10 million euros.

The Reds had become one of the biggest spenders in the Premier League this summer, second only to Chelsea, who had just changed their manager.

After Mourinho returned to Chelsea, he started spending heavily and scouted for players everywhere.

With strong backing, the Blues announced the signing of Germany's No. 10 from Real Madrid for a sky-high fee of 45 million euros.

The best player of the European Championship had officially left Real Madrid.

At the Bernabéu, Florentino began reflecting on himself.

(To be continued.)