Chapter 179 You deserve the captain's badge on your arm...
To Fino's surprise, the opportunity came so quickly.
The day before Real Madrid hosted AC Milan in the third round of the Champions League group stage, Casillas approached Fino after training.
Carbonero wanted Fino to be a guest on his live television show a week later.
A few days ago, Carbonero had already communicated with Fino's management team, and Julia declined after consulting with Fino.
Aside from tasks assigned by his club and national team, as well as promotional activities for partner brands, Fino rarely participates in television programs. He is already a top star in the football world and has no need to frequently appear in public to increase his exposure.
Moreover, he now has to go to school and study painting, and his time outside of competitions and training is fully scheduled. He also has two commercials to film for his new endorsement deal that he took on in the summer.
Whenever he has a spare moment, he has to squeeze in some food for Maldini, as the fans are eagerly awaiting it!
But Carbonero wasn't giving up. This episode aired the day after Fino's 22nd birthday, and Real Madrid had just played against Fino's former club, AC Milan, so Fino's popularity was guaranteed to be incredibly high. Given that Fino rarely appears on television, this immediately fueled audience anticipation, and the show's ratings were predictably high; related topics were likely to trend on social media for days.
Carbonero didn't want to miss out on this wave of attention, and she didn't care about being rejected. She had other connections. Her boyfriend was the captain of Real Madrid, and he had always had a friendly relationship with Fino. She believed that as long as Casillas intervened, Fino would agree.
Fino refused decisively, showing no respect for her boyfriend whatsoever.
“Igor, perhaps Carbonero didn’t tell you, but I have already declined the invitation.”
“Um…” Cassie was a little embarrassed, but she still put her arm around Fino’s shoulder and pleaded, “Please, Fino, Sarah really wants to invite you to this episode. She has done a lot of research and I don’t want to disappoint her.”
Casillas had a round head and looked simple and honest, like a chubby potato. Fino thought his pleading expression was kind of cute.
Normally, Fino might have agreed because Cassie was cute, but not now. He was plotting to pin the blame on Cassie!
He must deliver a crushing blow to Casillas today!
Fino took a step back, freeing himself from Cassie's arm around his shoulder, then crossed his arms and looked at Cassie with a half-smile.
"In what capacity are you asking me this favor?"
Cassie looked somewhat bewildered: "Is there any explanation for this?"
“Of course there are different interpretations, and they vary greatly,” Fino explained to him. “If you’re asking me this as Carbonero’s boyfriend, then it’s purely a business relationship, and we’ll handle it professionally. But if you’re asking me this as my teammate and friend at Real Madrid, then I’ll have to consider personal relationships.”
"Of course, it's as a teammate and friend!" Cassie felt that Fino was asking a question he already knew the answer to. He was only trying to curry favor because he had been rejected when he tried to contact Fino through business channels.
"Hmm..." Fino stroked his chin and began to accuse Casillas, "So, are you using your position as Real Madrid captain to benefit your reporter girlfriend?"
Cassie was stunned...
Even if it was a joke, that statement was still a bit hurtful.
His lips trembled; he wanted to retort, but he didn't know how to begin.
Seeing Cassie's bewildered expression, Fino didn't stop. He chuckled and continued, "Does your inability to distinguish between public and private matters do justice to the captain's armband you wear?"
Seeing the coldness on Fino's face, Cassie realized that Fino wasn't joking; he was serious.
This made Casillas feel greatly insulted. Fino was questioning his professional ethics, his love and loyalty to Real Madrid. His mind went blank for a moment, and his emotions suddenly surged.
He grabbed Fino by the front of her shirt and yelled, "How could you say that to me?!"
This remark immediately caught the attention of the other teammates who were playfully teasing each other.
"What's wrong? What's wrong? Igor, don't get agitated!" Ramos said as he jogged over, followed by a group of teammates.
Alonso pursed his lips. He had just seen Cassie pull Fino aside to talk, and it seemed that Cassie needed some space to talk alone, so he didn't follow. He didn't expect that the two of them would start arguing so soon.
Fino turned to Ramos and the others and said sternly, "Don't come any closer! Sergio, take everyone away. I need to have a good talk with our good captain!"
He was about to launch a tirade against Casillas, but of course, he couldn't let his teammates hear it, otherwise, where would his captain's authority be? How would he manage the locker room in the future? Although he felt that Casillas wasn't a very good captain.
Ramos stopped in his tracks, looked at Fino, then at Casillas, unsure of what to do.
Fino's harsh and cold tone deeply hurt Cassie. He had always liked Fino, but now the Fino he liked had dealt him a critical blow.
He slowly loosened his grip and asked sadly, "Finnie, in your heart, is that really who I am?"
Ramos weighed the pros and cons and figured the two wouldn't fight, so he advised, "Then you two should talk it out. Whatever your disagreements, just talk them out and it'll be fine. Just don't resort to violence, okay?"
After saying that, he turned around and waved to his teammates, leading them a little further away. A row of people stood at a distance, watching with concern.
“Igor, I don’t want to think of you as that kind of person either, but that’s the truth.” Fino sighed, then added, “I like you a lot, so do you know how upset I was when I found out you were a mole in the locker room leaking information to the reporters?”
Cassie retorted, "Sarah was just curious about some locker room gossip, how could that be serious enough to escalate to the level of 'insider leak'?"
"But after she got the information from you, she turned around and criticized Real Madrid on the show, damaging Real Madrid's reputation. Do you think this is a trivial matter?"
“Sarah is a sports journalist, she has the right to express her opinions, it’s her profession, and I can’t interfere!” Cassie continued to retort.
Fino clapped his hands and looked at Cassie with admiration, his expression seemingly saying, "How can someone be so shameless?"
"Igor, what kind of robber logic is this? You leaked the news from the locker room, that's not considered leaking secrets, it's just satisfying your girlfriend's curiosity. And it's not wrong for Carbonero to damage Real Madrid and her teammates' reputation, because that's her job. So, the club and her teammates deserve to suffer because you two have dragged them into this mess, right? Oh, right, let's look at this from another angle: you were the one behind it all, weren't you? You instructed her to stand up and criticize Real Madrid and her teammates, to get her to say what you really think, right?"
“I didn’t!” Cassie shouted, feeling like he was suffocating. How could Fino misunderstand him like that?
"You didn't? Then why didn't you stand up to clarify things for the club? Why didn't you stand up to speak for Ronaldo?" Fino sneered. "Ronaldo has been accused of being selfish, and the club has also suffered from public opinion. As the captain, shouldn't you stand up to protect your team and your teammates?"
“But…but Sarah…” Cassie felt her mind was in a mess.
“Let me speak for you!” Fino interrupted Cassie.
"Because you are a person who uses your position for personal gain. Knowing that your girlfriend is a reporter, you still chose to become an inside man and leak locker room information in order to please her and help her career rise step by step. You say that's her job. Okay, I understand her job. Then let me ask you, do you even remember your job? Are you a player or her spy planted in the locker room?"
"You've been playing football for a while now. Don't you even know the most basic locker room rules? Where is your professional ethics? Why do you dare to leak secrets so brazenly? Because you rely on your status as a Real Madrid youth academy graduate, the Real Madrid captain, and the starting goalkeeper. You rely on your seniority and ability. You think the team can't do without you, and your teammates don't dare to oppose you, so you are fearless."
"I truly hate Real Madrid's captaincy succession system. What makes you worthy of the captain's armband? You only enjoy the captain's aura and power, without fulfilling any of the captain's responsibilities and obligations. Do you think being a captain only involves flipping a coin before a match and lifting a trophy afterward? Managing the locker room, upholding the team's reputation, protecting teammates... what have you accomplished? The captain's armband, ha, do you even deserve it?"
"Why don't you stand up for the team and your teammates? Because this is a show put on by you and Carbonero! You don't care about your teammates at all, nor do you care about the widening rift in the locker room. You've put Real Madrid in a bloodbath, wantonly trampling on Real Madrid's dignity, ruining Real Madrid's image, and dragging down Real Madrid's performance. Admit it, you don't love Real Madrid at all. Real Madrid is just a tool for you and Carbonero to improve your own reputation."
Fino's words were like sharp knives, stabbing Cassie repeatedly, leaving him bleeding profusely. He didn't even know where to begin his rebuttal, and could only mutter dejectedly, "I didn't... I didn't..."
Cassie looked pitiful, and Fino felt a little sorry for her, but he couldn't stop now.
"You didn't? Then answer me, when Carbonero was slandering the club and his teammates, why didn't you, as the captain, stand up and speak out? Because you thought she was right, that Real Madrid was a bad team, that his teammates were all bad people, and that he was the only pure white lotus, that he was untainted by the mud, right?"
Cassie covered her face and shook her head repeatedly, unable to utter a single word.
"Why aren't you saying anything? Say something!" Fino shoved Cassie, and seeing Cassie's pathetic state, Fino, who had only been putting on an act, suddenly became really angry.
Casillas doesn't look like a captain at all. He's not even comparable to Maldini; he's far inferior to Raul.
“I don’t know what to do… I really didn’t want to hurt Real Madrid, nor did I want to hurt my teammates…” Casillas’s voice was choked with sobs, “I just love Sala so much, I don’t want to hurt her…”
Fino sneered: "You don't know what to do? I'll tell you! Just transfer, leave Real Madrid. Without you as a source of information in the Real Madrid dressing room, Carbonero's accusations against Real Madrid will naturally lose credibility. Oh, and by the way, whatever you do, don't stay in La Liga, otherwise, wherever you go, that club will be doomed. You and Carbonero are a perfect match, teaming up to betray the club and the dressing room!"
"Stop talking, Fini!" Casillas burst into tears. "You know I'm not that kind of person. You know I don't want to leave Real Madrid. I've been here for 20 years. This is my home!"
"Then keep your mouth shut, and let what happens in the locker room remain in the locker room. Carbonero's profession is too special. Every judgment she makes about the club and Real Madrid players will make outsiders speculate and wonder if you instructed her to do it. No matter what you think, the words that come out of her mouth carry the implication that the Real Madrid captain is betraying the club and her teammates."
Fino grabbed Casillas' shirt and continued, "If you can't control her mouth, then take remedial measures, shoulder your responsibility as Real Madrid captain, stand up in time to protect your teammates, and uphold Real Madrid's century-old glory!"
Cassie covered her eyes and nodded.
Fino's tone softened, and he reached out to hug Casillas.
“Igor, I understand Carbonero’s job. As a professional woman working in the sports world, her journey hasn’t been easy. But you have to understand that your professions are inherently opposed. She has her professional needs, and you need to have your professional ethics. Constantly leaking information to her and indulging her is not only unworthy of the captain’s armband you wear, but also disrespectful to her identity as a professional woman. You don’t want people to accuse her of getting her job by relying on you, do you? You need to learn to be professional. When she, as a journalist, makes statements detrimental to the club, you should stand up for the club as the captain of Real Madrid. That’s true respect for her. If she truly loves you, she will understand your situation.”
If she doesn't love you, and breaks up with you because she can't get inside information, or because you contradicted her, that has nothing to do with me! Fino added in her mind.
Cassie leaned on Fino's shoulder and nodded emphatically.
After Cassie calmed down, Fino ruffled Cassie's hair and added a few more words.
“Igor, your position as Real Madrid captain is a shortcut for Carbonero in the sports media, but this shortcut doesn’t come for free. It’s eroding your prestige at Real Madrid and among your teammates. When the club and your teammates can no longer tolerate it, you will be abandoned by everyone. If you truly love Real Madrid, don’t let yourself become the culprit who splits the dressing room and ruins Real Madrid’s image.”
He didn't know if Casillas had really listened, but he had certainly had his fill of venting. Even if what happened today got out, he was completely in the right and had no fear whatsoever.
That evening, Casillas posted a message on social media.
My partner, @SarahCarponero, and I are both in the sports industry. Because of our different professions and positions, we have different perspectives and viewpoints. In life, we love each other very much, but when it comes to work, all our statements represent only ourselves. In my opinion, @CristianoRonaldo is a great athlete. He has a strong mental fortitude, leads by example on the field, and emphasizes teamwork. I am proud to have such a teammate.
The next day, when the players arrived in the locker room, Fino saw Ronaldo hug Casillas.
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Author's note: Breaking up is unrealistic. Let Cassie learn not to leak secrets and how to make amends afterwards. That'll have to do it for now.
The simple-minded Cassie was powerless against Fino's verbal attacks and could only follow Fino's logic.
Thank you everyone for your support! [Laughing]
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