July 1st.

With the conclusion of the European Championship, the summer transfer window in Europe has officially opened.

In fact.

After the major leagues ended, the clubs began their intensive transfer work.

As a rising star who has just won the treble, Leeds United's official email inbox has been overflowing with messages from clubs familiar with their habit of nurturing and then selling off their players.

But Li Shiguang said so.

Before the transfer window opened, the entire club was given a holiday. Even Allen was sent on vacation by Li Shiguang after the negotiations with Manchester United ended.

That is precisely why.

The second day of July.

When Li Shiguang returned to work at Thorpe Arch, Allen, Ron, and the restless Rivaldo were already waiting outside his office.

I opened my office, which I hadn't sat in for almost a month.

Li Shiguang was somewhat surprised.

There was no dust on the sofas and desks in the office as I had imagined; everything was clean, just like before the club went on holiday.

"Boss, I had Lina come and clean it yesterday." Allen, who was preparing coffee for the group in front of the coffee machine, knew what Li Shiguang was surprised about and quickly explained.

"Hmm." Li Shiguang, leaning back on the sofa, nodded in satisfaction, looked at Ron, and then immediately got to the point, "So, Ron, how's our recruitment plan going?"

Ron seemed to be in a good mood, and upon hearing Li Shiguang's question, he immediately raised his eyebrows: "Not bad, boss!"

After the league ended.

In addition to Lewandowski, Kyle Walker, and Ivanovic, who were mentioned earlier.

Li Shiguang also gave Ron a list of three players. Li Shiguang asked Ron to compile their data for this season. If the data was satisfactory, then Ron could directly make offers to their respective clubs.

The players Li Shiguang is asking about now are these very players.

Ron took out a few sheets of paper from the bag beside him and began to report the situation.

"Boss, the players you mentioned have all performed very well this season."

“Javi Martinez made 34 appearances for Athletic Bilbao. Although he mostly played as a defensive midfielder at Athletic Bilbao, from my observation, he is very versatile. He can play as an attacking midfielder or even a shadow striker.”

"Diego Godin can be said to be the mainstay of Villarreal's defense. Although his physical attributes may be slightly lacking as a center-back, he is very composed and has a very precise control of his position. I see the shadow of Cannavaro in him! This center-back has made an indispensable contribution to Villarreal's second place in La Liga this season!"

"As for Jérôme Boateng, all I can say is that his physical attributes are comparable to our captain Vincent, and he seems to be faster than Vincent in terms of turning speed. Similarly, he has been a mainstay of Hamburg's defense this season."

"Not bad." Li Shiguang was also satisfied with Ron's work. "So, what about the quote?"

Ron replied with a smile, "I offered 13 million euros to Villarreal and Hamburg respectively for Godin and Boateng, and the clubs agreed to my offers. After contacting the players, they are not opposed to joining Leeds United. All that's left is for Alan to negotiate personal contracts with their agents, and there shouldn't be any problems."

"Hmm! What about Martinez? Villarreal didn't accept our offer?"

“Two factors!” Ron flipped to the last page, looking at the report, and said, “Because I was in Germany when we made the offer to Martinez, Hobert was in charge of the offer. According to his feedback, firstly, Villarreal felt that our offer of 14 million euros was a bit low. Secondly, after contacting Javi Martinez's agent, Hobert learned that the player himself seemed somewhat worried about whether he could secure a starting position after coming to us.”

“Hmm…” Li Shiguang pondered for a moment, then turned to look at Allen, who was still busy at the coffee machine. “Allen, you’re in charge of this next deal. The offer can be increased by up to 5 million euros…”

“Okay, boss!” Allen nodded quickly.

"As for the player himself, you can contact Martinez's agent and talk to him. Emphasize that Leeds United will be competing on four fronts next season, and my lineup will not remain unchanged. As long as you have the ability, it is not difficult to secure a starting position in a certain lineup."

"Okay, I understand!"

····

A short while later.

After finishing his housekeeping duties, Allen came over with coffee and placed it in front of everyone before sitting down.

Li Shiguang didn't need to ask.

Allen then took the initiative to report on the work he was responsible for.

"Boss, Preskov and I have reached an agreement on Lewandowski's side. It's 2 million euros. This huge sum of money has completely stunned their management. When the player learned that Leeds United wanted him, he didn't hesitate at all and agreed immediately."

"As for Kyle Walker, Sheffield United asked us to raise our offer a bit more. Based on the increase you previously set, I raised the offer to 8 million euros when I came back to work yesterday. They replied to me in the afternoon, agreeing to the price. I will contact the player's agent to discuss his personal contract."

Allen is always reliable; the tasks Li Shiguang assigns him almost never go wrong.

After listening to their reports.

Li Shiguang was extremely satisfied.

Including Cristiano Ronaldo, who was already signed some time ago.

This summer, Leeds United have completed 90% of their transfer targets.

The only remaining target that hasn't received any feedback from the club is Ivanovic!

So I took a sip of coffee.

Li Shiguang turned to look at Allen, signaling him to continue.

Allen understood what Li Shiguang meant and continued, "There's been a small problem with Ivanovich. I've been in contact with Peter Kenyon, and he's not against selling Ivanovich... But this morning, I received a call from Marina Granovskaia. She said on the phone that her boss, Abramovich, wants to talk to you in person."

Li Shiguang found it strange.

From what I remember.

I haven't even spoken to Abramovich yet.

I haven't seen Abramovich at several Premier League meetings.

Could it be that this Russian oligarch, upon discovering that the man he wanted to buy, Ivanovich, was from Eastern Europe, is now preparing to personally intervene in the negotiations?

then.

Li Shiguang looked at Allen with a strange expression and asked uncertainly, "You mean, Abramovich wants to talk to me?"

“Yes!” Allen nodded emphatically, shrugging helplessly. “Marina did say that…”