Chapter 183: The Battle of Captains [The fourth update of the explosive heart, begging for monthly subscription! ]
Aragon Street, downtown Valencia.
“This is it.”
Mendes stopped his car in front of a restaurant and spoke to Su Dong who was in the passenger seat.
Su Dong glanced sideways and found that this high-end restaurant on the roadside had a very interesting name.
Austrian number seven.
"It is said that this is where Valencia players often dine together. It is quite famous locally."
Su Dong looked around through the car window and found that there were indeed reporters waiting at the door, and they had obviously heard the news.
The paparazzi are omnipresent, so it is normal that someone in the team's locker room must have leaked the news.
The interests of players, clubs and media reporters are often intertwined. As long as it is not a big deal, basically no one will investigate who leaked the news.
Su Dong looked at the time, said goodbye to Mendes, opened the car door and got out.
…
"Vicente!"
Someone in the group of reporters shouted, and everyone looked over immediately.
"Vicente, I'm a reporter from the Valencia Daily. I'd like to ask you, what do you think of this captain election?"
"Do you feel that Benítez's reforms are inhumane?"
"Who do you think you would consider choosing as captain?"
The reporters swarmed around Vicente. Although they didn't dare to block his way, they made it difficult for him to move.
Su Dong took this opportunity, of course quickened his pace, and hurriedly caught up, trying to get away with it and rush into the restaurant.
But unexpectedly, there was another person who had the same idea as him, and the sharp-eyed reporters quickly noticed them.
"It's Su Dong! New recruit Su Dong!"
"He's really tall! And very handsome!"
"And Aymar!"
"When did he return to Valencia?"
The reporters immediately shook off Vincent and rushed towards Su Dong and Aimar.
The two of them had never expected that this group of reporters would change so quickly. Instead, Vincent breathed a sigh of relief, looked back at Su Dong and Aimar, smiled and nodded, and walked into the restaurant without any reluctance.
Thank you for your help! Originally they wanted to get away with it, but unexpectedly they were blocked at the door. Su Dong and Aimar were also helpless.
"Su, you just joined the team yesterday. Do you know what you are going to do today?"
"Did Canizares call you? Did he solicit your vote?"
"You met with Benítez. Did he tell you who to vote for?"
"Aimar, you are one of the hot candidates for captain. You and Su appeared at the same time. Does this mean that you have already received Su's precious vote?"
"Su, what do you think of Ayala's previous remarks about Barcelona?"
Su Dong kept pushing away the media reporters who blocked his way, but this group of guys still refused to give in.
Aimar was in the same awkward situation. The Argentine player seemed a little at a loss when facing the reporters and it seemed that he did not like dealing with media reporters on weekdays.
Seeing that the restaurant entrance was so close, but there were so many people between them, Su Dong and Aimar felt a little upset.
The two looked at each other, and unexpectedly they both had an idea.
Aimar was short and walked in front of Su Dong, responsible for squeezing out of the gap between the crowd. Su Dong was big and strong and followed Aimar closely. As soon as the gap opened, he rushed over and squeezed through the crowd.
Just like that, the two of them tacitly pushed through the crowd and entered the restaurant.
…
"call!"
Aimar let out a sigh of relief and looked back at the reporters who were still waving at him, feeling very scared.
If he were alone, he would probably be drowned in the crowd of reporters.
Although there were only more than 20 people, he was small and weak, and was often bullied.
"They always target me. Sometimes they block me for a long time and won't let me leave. Fortunately, you are here this time." Aimar smiled gratefully at Su Dong.
He is not tall, but very handsome, especially his smile is very sunny.
"Su Dong!" Su Dong smiled and stretched out his hand.
"Aimar." Aimar also smiled and shook hands with Su Dong.
After the two new teammates officially met, they walked into the restaurant together.
At this time, the first-team players have basically arrived, and their seats are arranged according to first come, first served, and how close they are to each other. The area with the largest number of people is occupied by Spanish local players.
Cañizares, Albelda, Baraja, Vicente, Marchena, Albiol and others all gathered together.
After taking a quick look, Aimar slowly walked towards the area where Ayala, Pellegrino and others were.
Su Dong hesitated for a moment and followed him over because he found that new signing Mohamed Sissoko was also in this area.
It is quite normal for factions to exist in the locker room. The key lies in whether there are conflicts between factions.
As the saying goes: Birds of a feather flock together.
It is quite normal that Spanish players form groups, while Argentine and South American players form their own groups. It is even estimated that there are other small factions within each group.
Su Dong sat down next to Aimar, still observing the situation on the scene. He found that the atmosphere was still very good and there was not much tension, which made him feel relieved.
"Don't worry, it's not as scary and bizarre as the media reporters outside say." Aimar beside him whispered.
Su Dong nodded slightly, he also noticed it.
Although Valencia has had outstanding foreign players led by Ayala in recent years, a group of local players led by Cañizares, Albelda and Baraja are still the backbone of the team.
Previously, the team had one captain and three vice-captains, and Ayala was one of the vice-captains.
But not long ago, Benítez thought that the configuration of four captains was a bit too bloated and not conducive to locker room management, so he decided to cut two captains and change them to one captain and one vice-captain.
The problem that follows is that Valencia's players have been seduced by outsiders.
Not long ago, Arsenal's Wenger publicly expressed his interest in Canizares, because the old goalkeeper Seaman, who was unwilling to be a substitute, went to Manchester City on a free transfer. Arsenal must introduce an experienced main goalkeeper, and Wenger wanted to get Canizares.
With Valencia's financial resources, if Wenger forces a move, it is unlikely that Cañizares will be retained.
Fortunately, Cañizares publicly expressed his loyalty to Valencia and expressed his determination to stay with the team.
But at the same time, he also announced his withdrawal from the captain election.
Obviously, Cañizares may not have no intention of leaving the team, and giving up the position of captain is also a consideration for this reason.
If Cañizares, as the captain, was relatively secretive, then Ayala's public statement that he was honored to receive Barcelona's invitation when he was recruited by Barcelona caused dissatisfaction among Valencia fans.
As the team's vice-captain, Ayala's statement is undoubtedly disappointing.
Because of this, in this election, everyone basically concluded that Ayala would not be able to compete for the captain and vice-captain positions, and instead the team's midfield core Aimar was pushed to the front.
But judging from the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, Aimar is not interested in this.
"Wait a minute it will be a secret vote and the new players can choose to abstain," Aimar reminded.
Su Dong smiled in response.
In fact, he had already decided before he entered the door that he would abstain or cast a blank vote regardless of whether there was any abstention or not.
He has only joined the team for one day, there is no reason for him to be involved in such disputes.
However, this was a great opportunity for him to observe the inside of the Valencia dressing room.
So far, although there are factions within the team, the atmosphere for the captain election is still very friendly. I don’t know if it is because the Spanish local faction is dominant.
…
After all 28 players of the first team arrived, the outgoing captain Cañizares hosted the dinner and announced the start of the secret ballot for the captain and vice-captain.
The voting method is very simple. Everyone will be given a piece of the same folded card. After opening it, they will write the jersey numbers of their ideal captain and vice-captain candidates, close it and throw it into the cardboard box in Cañizares' hand.
When the cards were being distributed, Su Dong expressed his intention to abstain, and Cañizares also agreed with Su Dong's abstention.
Another new signing, Mohamed Sissoko, also announced that he would give up and had no intention of participating.
We all just arrived, and no one wants to do something offensive at this time.
However, surprisingly, the atmosphere at the election site was surprisingly good.
Whether it was the Spanish players who were confident of winning, or foreign players such as Ayala and Pellegrino, they all talked happily with each other and even joked with each other. There was not a trace of competitive tension at all.
The final election result was not unexpected, and the captain was the least suspenseful.
As one of the three previous vice-captains, when Cañizares announced his withdrawal from the election and Ayala lost his eligibility to run for election due to a transfer incident, Albelda was elected captain with almost no suspense with a unanimous vote.
As a local youth player of Valencia, Albelda is the team's banner and benchmark, and he deserves it.
The competition for the deputy captain position is quite fierce.
According to the selection rules, Valencia's captain must take seniority into consideration. The 38-year-old Italian veteran Carboni has the longest seniority, but he is a little too old. Midfielders Baraja and Aimar both joined the team in 2000 and have made important contributions, so both are popular candidates for vice-captain.
However, Aimar announced his withdrawal early on, saying he did not have the ability to be captain.
In the end, between the two players, Baraha and Carboni, Baraha safely became the team's vice-captain.
It is interesting to say that this pair of double defensive midfielders of Valencia is a world-class combination, and now they have become the captain and vice-captain of the team, becoming the best partners both on and off the field.
Su Dong had been observing from the side and he began to believe that the atmosphere inside the Valencia locker room was still very good.
Albelda and Baraja were both elected captains, which undoubtedly once again proved the backbone status of Spanish local players.
As a new player, he doesn't need to worry too much about this.
He believes that as long as he works hard and improves his abilities, no matter who becomes the captain, it will not affect him.
But after this captain election, Su Dong felt the atmosphere in the Valencia locker room, which further convinced him that this team has great potential.
Only a team with a united locker room and a united mind can succeed!
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(End of this chapter)
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