“I’m still fucking here!” Ferguson replied, barely suppressing his anger.
Seeing Sir Alex Ferguson's reaction, Li Shiguang knew that his question had probably angered Ferguson. The old man was probably praying to God and cursing him right now.
Fortunately, I believe in Lao Tzu!
She pouted.
Li Shiguang decided to add fuel to the fire for Ferguson.
This is negotiation, a huge deal where the difference can easily be millions of euros! An opponent filled with rage is much easier to deal with than one who is calm and calculating.
So he continued in a flippant tone, "Didn't you hear what I just said? Do you need me to repeat it?"
"I fucking heard you clearly!"
"Then why won't you answer me? How much are you planning to spend to buy Schmeichel? Give me an answer!"
"You son of a bitch!!! Li!!! If you have the guts, come to Carrington right now, and I'll tell you right now how much I'm willing to pay to buy him!!!"
"Uh...aren't we on a call? Just tell me over the phone."
"Grass!"
Ferguson's anger finally reached its breaking point.
Just two days ago, the Premier League title, which seemed within reach, was snatched away in the last minute by this cunning young man on the other end of the phone.
I want to buy a goalkeeper from him, but I'm being ruthlessly played.
Sir Alex Ferguson, who has always been the undisputed leader at Manchester United, has never suffered such a huge loss in his life!
Countless beautiful words gathered in Ferguson's mind at this moment and were quickly sent to his mouth.
But Ferguson hadn't said it yet.
Having sensed that the old lord's emotions were almost at the right level, Li Shiguang immediately took the conversation a step further, at least this time he stated the price over the phone.
"The offer of 13 million euros is a bit low. If you want to buy the starting goalkeeper of the Premier League champion team, you need to raise the price a bit more!"
Finally, a normal conversation made Ferguson swallow back the curse that was about to come out of his mouth. He kept mentally arguing with himself, reminding himself that he was a knight who had been personally granted a lower rank by the royal family, and he couldn't lower himself to the level of that rude and uncultured young man!
This isn't the first time Ferguson and Lee Shih-shih have done player trades.
Even at the very beginning of the offer, he knew that Li Shiguang would not simply sell his starting goalkeeper to Manchester United.
This price might have been acceptable before winning the title, but now that Leeds United have won the Premier League, given Lee Shih's personality, it's absolutely impossible for him to let Schmeichel go so easily.
This was also because I had prepared myself mentally beforehand.
So when Ferguson heard Li Shiguang ask him to raise prices, he didn't feel as angry as when he heard Li Shiguang arguing with him earlier!
"How many do you want?" After calming himself down a bit, Ferguson decided to toss the ball back to Li Shiguang.
"20 million euros!" Li Shiguang reacted incredibly quickly, immediately demanding an exorbitant sum!
Ferguson could hardly believe his ears. He answered even faster than Li Shiguang: "20 million euros? You're fucking dreaming! You think you're selling Buffon?!"
“Buffon can only be the Serie B champion at best this year, but I’m the Premier League champion goalkeeper! And I’m younger than him! Why can’t I be less expensive than him?” Li Shiguang’s response was so confident that Ferguson couldn’t find a point to refute it for a moment.
Left with no other option, Sir Alex Ferguson could only grit his teeth and roar, "That's still impossible! 20 million euros! Buying a goalkeeper for that price? I'd be smashing my head in the door!"
“Alright! 18 million euros, that’s the lowest I can go!” Li Shiguang backed down, but this 18 million euros was the price he had set at the beginning. It was only after going around in circles that it was presented to Ferguson.
Ferguson didn't agree immediately, but his tone softened considerably: "This price is still a bit high. I only spent £2 million to buy Van der Sar! Like I said, Lee, I'm just buying a goalkeeper!"
Li Shiguang has been dealing with Ferguson for quite some time, and their relationship has never been bad.
While I wouldn't say I fully understand Sir Alex Ferguson's personality, I have a pretty good grasp of it.
If the usually tough Ferguson softens his tone during negotiations, it basically means he has already agreed. The reason he still wants to argue with you is simply because he needs a solid reason.
Li Shiguang had already come up with this reason for him!
So he began to comfort him, saying, "Alex, I know what you're saying. But you also need to think about how old Van der Sar was when he joined Manchester United. He was 35! And Schmeichel is only 21 now! To put it bluntly, if your coaching skills were as good as mine, he might be able to help Manchester United guard the goal until you retire! Besides, wasn't his father one of your favorite students? Two generations of your family have worked for the same club, and you were the one behind it all. If the media were to expose this, it would definitely boost your personal reputation to another level. You'd be thanking me then!"
It's started again!
Ferguson rolled his eyes. He was too lazy to argue with Li Shiguang and automatically ignored the attack and temptation in Li's words.
They began to seriously consider the useful information in Li Shiguang's words.
Indeed, as Li Shiguang said.
Schmeichel's biggest advantage is that he's 21!
According to my own investigation, Kasper Schmeichel, like his father, has an impeccable work ethic. In his two years at Leeds United, his skills have steadily improved, and he is now at the level of a top-class Premier League goalkeeper.
Although his leadership qualities on the field are not quite as good as his father's, Schmeichel is much more composed than his father was at that age, which is exactly what Ferguson valued most when choosing a goalkeeper.
If Kasper Schmeichel can maintain his good form and professional attitude, he might actually be able to play goalkeeper for Manchester United until he retires, just as Li Shiguang said.
So if you calculate it that way, 18 million euros is actually a good deal!
"So? Have you made up your mind, Alex?"
Li Shiguang's voice came through the phone at just the right moment.
Ferguson stood in his office with a wry smile: "Lee, I've never gotten the better deal doing business with you!"
“You can’t say that, Alex.” Li Shiguang was secretly delighted, knowing that the 18 million euros were basically in his hands, so he stopped joking. “Schmeichel’s ability is obvious to all, you definitely won’t regret spending this 18 million euros!”
"Alright! I'll send someone over to sign the contract once I'm done with this busy period. If there's nothing else, I'll hang up now."
Having said all that, Ferguson stopped resisting, agreed, and prepared to hang up the phone.
But Li Shiguang's voice came from the other side again, and it made him furious!
"Don't panic!"
"Is there anything else?"
"I'd like to ask, Cristiano, are you selling?"
"roll!!!!"
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