In the afternoon, Florentino had just returned to his office at the Bernabeu Stadium after his lunch break, when CEO Angel Sanchez knocked on the door of his office and came in with a very solemn expression.

"Mr. President, we have just received a response from Chinatown. ”

Florentino, who was sitting at the desk, heard this, raised his head slightly, and looked at Sanchez in front of him, "What do you say?"

"It's the same as before, it's not for sale. Sanchez emphasised the word "not for sale".

"Not for sale?" Florentino was stunned for a moment, then laughed, isn't this nonsense?

"This year, they still have non-sale items in Chinatown?"

Before selling Falcao, Diego Costa, Otamendi, Aldevilla and Michu, they were all said to be non-sale, but as long as the other party offered them a satisfactory price, which is the so-called termination money, where would they refuse?

"Uh......" Sanchez obviously knew that Chinatown was not very good in this regard, "but...... Armando Marcos said that this time it was serious. ”

"Oh. Florentino nodded in realization, "That means they weren't serious before?"

Sanchez was completely speechless, and he really didn't know how to answer.

Anyway, associating Chinatown with non-sale items gives people a very discordant, even funny feeling.

Who knows that this team has gone to great lengths and methods to build a new stadium, and even sold the stadium naming rights for the next ten years in advance.

"What is the current termination fee for James Rodriguez?" asked Florentino casually.

"Eighty million euros. ”

"Eighty million euros?" Florentino was a little surprised, "Isn't it sixty million euros?"

"Uh......" Sanchez almost said that it was your intelligence error, but he quickly swallowed the words back into his stomach, "The contract that was renewed not long ago was increased from 60 million euros to 80 million euros, and in addition, the likes of De Gea and Hazard even mentioned 100 million euros, and Isco and others have also greatly increased the release fee. ”

Florentino laughed after hearing this, "Gao Han, this coward, I'm afraid that someone will dig up his phobia." ”

Sanchez couldn't help but wonder, who's to say it wasn't?

It's only been two years since they were promoted to La Liga, but how many stars has Chinatown sold?

If this is not sold out, the current Chinatown must have the strength to challenge for the La Liga title, and it will not still be struggling for a top-four in the league.

But there is no way, from a business point of view, if the players are retained, I am afraid that the salary alone can bankrupt Chinatown.

"Then wait a little longer. Florentino thought for a moment and sighed.

He doesn't plan to go to Gao Han for this matter, and it's not a good thing to owe Gao Han a favor, but it would be very distressing to ask him to give a transfer fee of 80 million euros, so he plans to think about it again.

At the very least, call someone from the board of directors to study it.

But Sanchez shook his head resolutely and said, "Can't wait any longer. ”

"Can't wait any longer?" Florentino wondered, "Why? Are there any other teams that have taken a fancy to James Rodriguez?"

"No, it's not. Sanchez shook his head, "Chinatown will play the fourth round of qualifying for the Champions League on Wednesday. ”

Florentino didn't quite understand, but quickly caught what Sanchez meant.

He's a group boss and the president of Real Madrid, but he's not the same kind of crap as Calderón and Mijatovic, he's a very senior fan and he knows the rules of football very well.

According to the current UEFA terms, a player can only play in European competitions for one team in a season, which means that as long as James Rodriguez has played in the Champions League qualifiers, even if he transfers to Real Madrid, he will not be able to play in the Champions League for the Galacticos, and can only play in the league.

Imagine, a team that joins at a high price, but can't play in the Champions League, what will fans think?

Calderón and Mijatovic did this kind of stupid thing back then, making Real Madrid a laughing stock all over the world, and Florentino is not willing to repeat the mistakes of his predecessor, but Real Madrid can't stop Chinatown, right?

"It's really tricky. Florentino let out a long sigh and said.

He promised the board of directors and management that he must bring in a superstar this summer, but looking at the transfer market in the entire European football world, Real Madrid can not dig many superstars, and there are only a handful of them in line with the long-term plan of the Galaxy Battleship.

If James Rodriguez is allowed to stay in Chinatown, Real Madrid will not get anything this summer.

And as long as the Colombian midfielder participates in the Champions League qualifiers, he is destined to stay.

But the players are from Chinatown, and Real Madrid can't allow Chinatown to use its own players in the game, right?

Florentino pondered for a long time, and then knocked on the table, "In this way, Angel, you go to Chinatown in person and tell Armando Marcos that we want to buy James Rodriguez, the price can be negotiated, but in any case we can't let him participate in the Champions League qualification, and the offer is raised to 60 million euros." ”

"I'm afraid it'......," Sanchez thought, not enough.

"I'll give Mendes a call right away, and I'm sure he's still a bit of an influence in Chinatown. ”

…………

…………

On August 17, the fourth qualifying round of the Champions League officially ignited the flames.

The highly anticipated Chinatown also kicked off their first official match of the new season, visiting Denmark and away to Odants.

But Chinatown's Champions League debut was not a success.

La Liga teams had 62 per cent possession throughout the game, and apart from the number of fouls, they basically crushed Odan in all other statistics, but they were never able to knock on the door of the Danish team in attack.

Not only that, but in the 84th minute, Oldans midfielder Andre Asen scored a goal from China City through a counter-attack, giving the Champions League newcomers an away defeat in their debut.

After the game, the whole of European football was in an uproar.

Last season's La Liga super dark horse, but this season can not beat a Danish team, which makes everyone very dissatisfied with the debut of Chinatown, especially the center Pelle, who did not play the slightest threat, which makes people wonder whether he has the strength to play the main role in Chinatown.

The newspaper was even sarcastic on the front page, believing that Chinatown wanted to play the Champions League with a player who could not play the main role in the Eredivisie, which was simply self-defeating, and this defeat was just the beginning.

Chinatown coach Mauricio Pochettino said in an interview with the media that losing one goal away is within an acceptable range.

'It's our first time playing in the Champions League and it's the first game of the new season, so the players were really nervous and we didn't play as well as we should have, but I'm sure in a week's time, back at the Bloe Stadium, we'll get the right to qualify. ”

As for the absence of James Rodriguez, the core of the team's midfield, Pochettino's explanation is exactly the same as the management's previous clarification, the Colombian has just returned and is not fully ready.

"We all know that he has just had a busy summer, the Copa America and the Under-20 World Cup have been very good, but it has also made him very tired, so when he comes back to the team, his first task is not to play, but to get fit for the upcoming season. ”

As to whether James Rodriguez will play in the second leg, Pochettino said it all depends on the form and fitness of the players.

Soon, the Spanish media dug up the inside story, believing that the reason why James Rodriguez did not appear in the pre-match squad was because he took the initiative to contact the manager and management before the game, hoping to transfer to Real Madrid.

But this news was immediately refuted by agent Mendes.

The Portuguese says James Rodriguez has just signed a new contract with the club and will not do such a thing.

Chinatown officials also quickly gave an explanation, saying that the rumors in the outside media are all false facts.

And at an open training session after the game, James Rodriguez looked in high spirits and interacted closely with manager Mauricio Pochettino, not at all contradictory.

As a result, it was soon revealed that Real Madrid was close to reaching an agreement with Chinatown.

According to insiders, Real Madrid has been making offers for James Rodriguez since more than a month ago, from the original 50 million euros to the current 65 million euros, but Chinatown has always refused to sell James Rodriguez. ”

Compared with Chinatown's defeat in the first round of the Champions League qualifying round, Paris Saint-Germain got off to a good start in the Europa League, beating Divdag 4-0 away, and has basically advanced to the official competition in advance.

After returning to France, he ushered in the third round of Ligue 1, beating Valenciennes 4-0 at home, Suarez made two passes and one shot, and his performance was very eye-catching, and he was elected the best player of the game, while Drogba also performed well with one pass and one shot.

Only Neymar, this game is once again dumb, which makes people a little worried.

But at a press conference after the match, Gao Han refused to answer questions from the French media about the transfer rumours of Chinatown player James Rodriguez, and said he would leave early if anyone asked any more questions.

After Chinatown returned from Denmark to Spain, it ushered in the first La Liga game of the new season, James Rodriguez missed the start again, and the teenager Isco started.

As a result, in the first half of the game was tied 0-0, in just three minutes of the second half, Ibrahimovic and Messi scored two goals in the 48th and 51st minutes respectively, and then Pedro assisted Messi to score another goal in the 80th minute to help Barcelona seal the victory in advance.

It wasn't until the 85th minute that Eden Hazard assisted Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang for a goal.

In the end, the first round of the Chinatown League lost 1-3 at home, and Pelle's performance was disappointing again.

Two consecutive defeats have caused Chinatown to suffer a strong crisis of confidence, especially regarding the starting of James Rodriguez and the strength of Pelle, which has attracted widespread attention.

The fanbase's call for James Rodriguez to start is also getting louder and stronger.

Even Marca's Matayana reminded Chinatown's management in a column that reaching the Champions League group stage will earn at least 20 or 30 million euros, which is crucial for Chinatown, which has a weak foundation.

Leaving James Rodriguez behind has become a widespread consensus inside and outside Chinatown, and it has also pushed Chinatown and Real Madrid to a dead end.

In the second leg of the fourth qualifying round of the Champions League, is this James Rodriguez on or not?

(End of chapter)