Allen sensed something from Li Shiguang's choice of words. He looked at the photo on the computer: "Marcelo? Real Madrid wants to buy this kid?"

Realizing there was a flaw in his words, Li Shiguang quickly shifted the blame to Raiola: "Yes! Raiola recommended this kid to me before, and according to him, Real Madrid is quite interested in him."

"Boss, are there any requirements regarding the quoted price?"

"I can accept anything under 10 million euros!"

"OK!"

····

Four days later, at the London Olympic Stadium, the 15th round of the Premier League match between Leeds United and West Ham United is about to kick off.

In the Sky Sports studio, Lineker had just finished introducing the starting lineups for both sides when he asked Jon, who was sitting to his left, with a puzzled look: "Jon, did you hear that Maicon was injured before this match?"

Jon was taken aback, then replied, "Huh? No!"

“Hmm, that’s a bit strange. I haven’t heard anything about Maicon being injured lately.” Lineker picked up the Leeds United squad list on the table. “But today Lee started Mills at left-back and moved Lahm to the right. Most importantly, I can’t find Maicon’s name on the squad list. What’s going on?”

Jon shook his head, his eyes also filled with confusion: "I don't know either. Maybe he got injured during pre-match training, so Li temporarily removed him from the roster."

Lineker wanted to discuss the matter further with Jon, but the referee's whistle had already sounded on the television, so Lineker had no choice but to refocus his attention on the game.

West Ham United have not been in good form this season, ranking only 15th in the league after 14 rounds. In this round, facing Leeds United, who were unbeaten in November, even with home advantage, they could not escape being dominated from the start.

In the 24th minute, Leeds United's relentless attack finally paid off.

Mills, who hadn't had a starting opportunity in a long time, completed a one-two with Ribery on the right wing before crossing the ball. However, West Ham United's goalkeeper Carroll punched the ball out of the penalty area, but unfortunately, it landed right at the feet of Rivaldo, who was lurking at the edge of the box. The Brazilian controlled the ball, feinted past the center-back who rushed to block his shot, and then unleashed a powerful left-footed shot into the top right corner of the West Ham goal. Carroll, who had just gotten up from the ground, could only watch helplessly as the ball flew into his own net!

After taking the lead, Leeds United slowed down their attack, and the score remained 0-1 at halftime.

At the start of the second half, West Ham United, playing at home, launched several threatening attacks while Leeds United were still recovering from the break, forcing Schmeichel to make two saves.

Leeds United finally woke up after their players were berated by Li Shiguang on the sidelines.

In the 69th minute, Ribery attempted a breakthrough on the right wing but failed and passed the ball across to De Bruyne, who replaced Rivaldo. The Belgian youngster received the ball but did not stop it. Instead, he imaginatively curled the ball into the West Ham United penalty area with the instep of his right foot.

As De Bruyne passed the ball, Torres, who was starting his run at the same time, instantly completed a perfect offside trap. Then, on the edge of the six-yard box, before the ball even touched the ground, he swung his right leg and unleashed a powerful volley. The incredibly fast ball flew past Carroll's left and nestled into the far corner of the goal!

Ultimately, Leeds United secured three points from the Olympic Stadium thanks to these two goals!

····

The result of this match did not cause much of a stir; in everyone's eyes, Leeds United, with their morale high, were almost certain to defeat West Ham United.

However, a news item in the Manchester Evening News the day after the match caught people's attention.

The news article was written by Charles Walters, who had a very unpleasant argument with Li Shiguang at the last press conference.

This news comes from an interview with Antonio, the agent of Leeds United player Maicon, conducted by Charles. In the interview, he fiercely criticized the owners and manager of Leeds United, Lee Shiguang.

Interestingly, this interview was initiated by Antonio contacting Charles, who said he had some juicy scoops about Leeds United and needed media support. Upon hearing that it was about Leeds United, Charles immediately arranged an interview with Antonio.

Antonio discussed why Maicon wasn't on the roster for yesterday's game and bluntly called Lee Shiguang a devil!

It turns out that Leeds United recently had some disagreements with Maicon during contract renewal negotiations. While these disagreements were still being negotiated, Li Shiguang, without any reason, demoted the healthy and in-form Maicon to Leeds United's reserve team, and even threatened to make the player spend the rest of his contract in the reserve team if Maicon did not accept his proposed renewal terms! It should be noted that the 26-year-old Maicon is in a crucial period of his career development. If he doesn't get to play competitive matches for a year and a half, it will undoubtedly be a devastating blow to his career!

In just one morning, the news quickly spread throughout English football, and more and more voices began to condemn Li Shiguang online.

"That Easterner deserves to die! How could he do such a thing!"

"Upstairs, he's the owner and manager of Leeds United. In Thorpe's Arch, can't he do whatever he wants?"

"It is recommended that the English Footballers' Association immediately launch an investigation, and once the allegations are substantiated, this behavior must not be tolerated!"

"He's been sitting on the fence! Lee has been in charge of Leeds United for over two years, and this is the first time there's been talk of a rift between him and the players. I think there must be other hidden reasons behind this!"

"What a load of rubbish! This guy is just doing whatever he wants because he holds the majority of Leeds United's shares!"

In this atmosphere, Li Shiguang did not come forward to explain immediately.

The day before the match against West Ham United, news came from Ron that he had reached an €8 million agreement with Fluminense, and that young Marcelo had been impressed by Real Sociedad's promise of a starting right-back and accepted Leeds United's offer.

So Li Shiguang had Allen contact Lind of the Yorkshire Post, gave him the exact recording of his phone call with Calderon that day, and then took Lina on a flight to Spain.

Compared to engaging in verbal battles with these media outlets, he's clearly more interested in how to cut off Calderon's escape route in the transfer market...