Chapter 248: Let me play against Chelsea!

"Do you know who is coming today?"

In the terminal hall of Heathrow Airport, a group of familiar reporters gathered together to chat.

There is still half an hour left, it’s still early, let’s chat and kill some time.

Most people shook their heads, only the reporter from The Sun nodded.

"I checked. A plane from Spain landed at Heathrow Airport at 9:25 this morning."

Now everyone looked at the Sun reporter with completely different eyes.

It seems that even when being paparazzi, smart people still have the advantage.

"Spain? Could it be Javi Martinez?"

"It must be. Didn't the Spanish media report it before?"

There is no impenetrable wall in this world.

This is especially true in the transfer market.

Since the end of last season, the entire transfer market has been hyping up various transfer rumors.

The media are also eager to spread more news of this kind to promote sales.

So, sometimes, it is difficult to distinguish between truth and falsehood.

"Is this Javi Martinez really that strong?" a reporter asked curiously.

"Who knows?"

"I heard that Barcelona and Real Madrid also think he is good. He just led the Spanish U21 team to win the championship in Denmark as captain. His performance was really good. He is a defensive midfielder and has good ball handling and passing abilities."

"It seems to be consistent with the outside world's positioning of Southampton's midfield flaws."

A football lineup is like a puzzle, and the players are the pieces of it.

It was a consensus last season that Southampton's midfield lacked a defensive midfielder.

Now, the introduction of Javi Martinez will undoubtedly fill this gap.

The strength of Athletic Bilbao's midfield may not be outstanding, but firstly, he is young, and secondly, he is a Spanish international.

These days, Spanish internationals are like the local household registration books in England, with an aura of bonus attributes.

"It seems that Southampton is really planning to make a big move in the new season!"

"Who says it's not?"

"But this team is making a lot of money. So far, they have made around 75 million pounds from selling players. The sponsorship fee from Adidas is 30 million pounds. Add in the sponsorship from Heineken and Chiron, and the revenue is staggering."

"I heard the news before that they were preparing to recruit members."

"Member? What member?"

"One thousand core Saints."

"Only a thousand people?"

"Yes, no more, no less, exactly one thousand."

"Wow, isn't that crazy?"

In the whole of England, who doesn’t know that Southampton is the most rapidly developing city right now?

Especially in the eyes of the younger generation, supporting Manchester United, Arsenal, Liverpool, Chelsea, etc. is considered to be a big deal.

Nowadays, if young people do not support Southampton, they are considered to be out of touch with the times.

"Probably not."

"Why?"

Everyone immediately looked over curiously.

The speaker was a reporter from the Southern Echo, and he obviously enjoyed the feeling of being surrounded and questioned by his peers.

"I also heard that although Southampton only has 1,000 members, the membership fee is very shocking, as high as 100,000 pounds."

"What?"

"A hundred thousand pounds?"

“Are you stupid?”

"How is that possible!"

Almost everyone expressed surprise in unison and shook their heads.

“Do you know how much the membership fee for Manchester United is?”

"Thirty-two pounds!"

“Do you know how much the membership fees for Real Madrid and Barcelona are?”

"One hundred and fifty euros and one hundred and thirty-seven euros!"

"Everyone can understand that Southampton wants to recruit members, but the membership fee is as high as 100,000 pounds, which is already the annual fee for the most luxurious VIP box at Arsenal's Emirates Stadium. Who is so stupid as to join Southampton as a member?"

"That's right. Even if a person is stupid and rich, he can't be this stupid."

"In my opinion, the second-generation rich man in Southampton has plenty of money himself, so he thinks everyone in the world is the same as him and has plenty of money too."

"I dare say that no one will give the membership fee of one hundred thousand pounds!"

"That's right, whoever gives it to whom is an idiot!"

The young reporter from the Southern Echo had a wry smile on his face. He was just talking about some gossip he had heard.

"However, I heard that Prince William and his wife seem to be joining the club."

When these words were spoken, everyone was surprised again.

"What?"

"How is that possible?"

"Do they have the money to join?"

Everyone was talking at once, and almost everyone expressed doubts about this.

But it is undeniable that they were all surprised.

Astonishing membership fees, a limit of one thousand, plus Prince William and his wife, this is quite a gimmick!

From the perspective of a journalist, not creating hype is really a betrayal of one's professional ethics.

Just at this moment, someone shouted in the waiting hall.

"Look, people are coming out!"

For a moment, the fans and reporters in the entire waiting hall were in chaos, like an ant nest that had been poked open.

Everyone rushed to the gate.

Soon, the tall Javi Martinez was seen slowly walking out of the airport gate accompanied by his agent and brother. As soon as they appeared, the entire waiting hall was in an uproar.

"Harvey, look here!"

"Javi Martinez, look here, I'm from the Times!"

"I'm from BBC TV. Can you accept our interview?"

"Can you tell me why you chose to join Southampton?"

"I want to ask, how much money did Southampton give you to choose to play in the Championship?"

"Tell me, do you think there is a future in joining Southampton?"

Reporters rushed forward, and the fans who were waiting nearby were also squeezed and immediately resisted.

The entire airport gate was suddenly in chaos.

Javi Martinez and the other two were obviously stunned.

Isn’t that crazy?

I joined Southampton, which is not a top team.

Why... why are these reporters and fans so crazy?

Looking at his agent and brother beside him, Javi Martinez's eyes showed confusion.

Are you sure I'm joining a Championship team?

…………

…………

"BBC TV midday news report."

"At 9:25 this morning, Spanish international Javi Martinez arrived at Heathrow Airport. He will go to Southampton to join the traditional powerhouse Southampton Saints."

"At that time, there were thousands of fans and hundreds of journalists from far away gathered at Heathrow Airport. There was a riot at the scene, and the airport security had to be dispatched in groups to barely maintain order at the scene."

"Next, let's take a look at the footage our reporter took from the scene!"

In a private room at the Riverside Chinese restaurant in Harrods in London, Yang Huan was watching the BBC news on TV with great interest.

Sitting opposite him was Chelsea's main striker, Didier Drogba, and his agent, Sedi.

Drogba and the other man were also shocked by the chaotic scene on TV.

Could it be that Southampton really has such influence and appeal?

How could so many fans and reporters rush to the airport to pick them up?

I believe that if they knew that Southampton did not organize it intentionally at all, and everything happened just because of a word from the young master Huan in front of them, they would definitely be even more shocked.

But the instigator of the whole incident, our Mr. Yang Huan, did not have the slightest awareness of being the perpetrator.

He looked at Drogba in front of him with interest and smiled faintly.

"I heard that you are not very willing to join Southampton?" Yang Huan asked.

Drogba and Sedi looked at each other and said nothing, which was considered as their agreement.

Even though they have agreed to join, they are still somewhat unhappy in their hearts.

"You are afraid!" Yang Huan said confidently.

This is not a question, but an affirmative sentence.

"Am I afraid?" Drogba asked a question.

"I can understand that at the age of 33, your career is going downhill, so it's inevitable that you're worried about gains and losses. You don't want to lose everything you have now, and I can understand that."

Drogba remained silent, he didn't know what he should say.

I always feel that what he said is not wrong.

But that's the case with everyone, isn't it?

Even Drogba, who claims to be the world's number one center forward, is just an ordinary person, isn't he?

"I know you are very unwilling to join a Championship team and compete with Ibrahimovic, who is also a top center forward, for a starting position, but you have no choice."

Yang Huan was still smiling, and his smile was very relaxed.

He wasn't the sad one, so of course he felt relieved.

Drogba had no idea what Yang Huan was trying to say or what Yang Huan wanted to do.

But after hearing these words, he became a little angry.

Isn't this just bringing up something that is not related to the topic?

Is it fun to expose people's scars?

But when he saw his eyes, Yang Huan burst out laughing.

"That's the look. Yes, I know Drogba, the Warcraft, has that look!"

Drogba was stunned and completely confused.

Is this guy trying to provoke me on purpose?

"How about this!" Yang Huan clapped his hands vigorously and said with a smile, "I'll give you a chance and fulfill one of your wishes. Tell me, what do you want?"

After a pause, Yang Huan added, "Even if you beg me to let you transfer freely, I can agree. I keep my promise!"

Drogba and his agent Sedi were both dumbfounded.

Will you agree to it even if it's a free transfer?

Is this true or false?

Look at the handsome guy in front of him who is smiling and looks harmless. It seems that he doesn't take Drogba seriously at all.

At this moment, Drogba really had a feeling.

I felt like a toy in Yang Huan's hands, a toy that could be thrown away at any time and anywhere.

This feeling made him angry because he had his own dignity.

But I feel helpless because it is very realistic, even though it is cruel.

He had an urge to ask, "Why don't I ask?"

But soon, his professional ethics suppressed this tempting thought.

Because he couldn't get over this hurdle.

Now that he has agreed to join Southampton, what kind of person is he if he suddenly thinks about transferring and leaving?

Others can treat him as a plaything, but he cannot look down on himself like that.

Leaving now and leaving a year later are completely different.

"Do you really agree to everything?" Drogba asked in a deep voice.

Yang Huan nodded without hesitation, "That's right!"

Drogba really wanted to say, just let me play as a starter and let me prove my ability.

But he quickly suppressed the thought.

Because once he mentioned this, he would obviously feel like a coward.

Is it because he can't compete with Ibrahimovic that he wants to express this wish?

After thinking a lot, he finally made a decision.

"In other games, I will rely on my own efforts to fight for a starting position, but against Chelsea, you have to let me play!"

When it comes to Chelsea, Drogba's eyes flash with anger.

Abramovich regarded him as a discarded pawn, but he tried every means to prove his strength and value in front of Abramovich.

For a professional player, there is no better way to prove himself than to beat Chelsea in a professional game.

"Although I'm not the head coach, I can promise you on behalf of Bielsa!"

After Yang Huan finished speaking with a serious face, he diluted the serious atmosphere with a burst of laughter.

He clapped his hands and looked at Drogba with ease.

"Look, we soon have something in common!"

Drogba also witnessed the methods of this young master Huan.

Perhaps, in the eyes of Young Master Huan, he is still nothing, so Young Master Huan can satisfy any of his wishes without any hesitation, and even let him transfer freely.

But no matter what, at least he felt respected.

At least, he respects his own opinions and choices!

"Your desire is to beat Chelsea and prove your worth."

"My wish is to defeat all the giants and prove the worth of us Great Saints!"

"In a way, our wishes are the same!"

At this point, Yang Huan smiled and raised a goblet filled with Calon red wine.

"Come, let's have a drink for our common wish!"

Drogba and his agent Sedi immediately raised their glasses.

With a clang, it’s done!