“...... In the just-concluded 2014 World Cup semi-finals, the Chinese team was sent off in the first half of the main goalkeeper Sun Pan, and the head coach Lippi was sent to the stands, conceding four goals in a row. However, due to the disadvantage in numbers, coupled with a set of continuous battles, the physical consumption was too great, and at the last moment of the game, he was weak, and finally lost to the German national team 3:4 and lost the qualification to enter the World Cup finals......"

“...... Zhou Yi criticized the referee's practice of giving Sun Pan a red card after the game, and regretted the result. But he also said that after four years, the Chinese national team will definitely make a comeback. By that time, the Chinese team will be even stronger than it is now......"

After the German team narrowly passed the semi-finals, Mark Wagner said in an interview with reporters after the game that he was not surprised that the Chinese team chased three goals in the second half, because they have players like Zhou Yi who will never give up...... Loew criticised the team's relaxed mental state in the second half in the post-match press conference, arguing that this was the main reason for the team's embarrassment in the second half......

......

“...... The Chinese team, which lost its main goalkeeper Sun Pan and head coach Lippi, fought hard with the Dutch team for 120 minutes in the third and fourth finals, and finally lost to the Dutch national team 1:2 and missed the third place in the World Cup...... Although it only finished fourth in the World Cup, this is already the best result for the Chinese team in the history of the World Cup, and it is also the best result for an Asian team in the World Cup......"

"Germany won the World Cup at the Maracanã Stadium thanks to Mario Gotze's last-minute goal in stoppage time, beating Lionel Messi's Argentina 1-0...... Then the individual awards of the World Cup were also released, and He Ying became the top scorer of this World Cup with six goals...... German goalkeeper Manuel Neuer became the best goalkeeper in the World Cup, while Messi won the Ballon d'Or and Zhou Yi won the Silver Ball award at the World Cup......"

......

"The curtain has come down on the World Cup in Brazil, and this afternoon, the Chinese national team's civil charter flight arrived at Beijing Capital International Airport...... At the airport, the Chinese team was warmly welcomed by fans across the country, and although the team did not win any honors, the semi-finals had already created their best results...... In this World Cup, the Chinese team has won the hearts of fans across the country with their outstanding performance, which can be seen from the number of fans gathered at the scene, and many fans even made a special trip from Sichuan, Yunnan, Guangdong, Zhejiang and other places......"

“...... As the captain of the Chinese team, Zhou Yi thanked the fans for their support at the airport on behalf of the whole team, and said that Russia will continue to charge towards the World Cup four years later...... At that time, Zhou Yi was twenty-seven years old, He Ying was twenty-eight years old, Sun Pan was twenty-six years old, Guo Nu was twenty-seven years old, Yang Muge was twenty-six years old, Yan Min was twenty-five years old, Wu Lei was twenty-six years old, and Zhang Linpeng was twenty-nine years old...... These players are in their playing years, and we can expect them to do well in four years......"

......

※※※

"Zhou Yi, we have already negotiated with Real Madrid, and they intend to directly activate the breach clause in your contract...... "The agent Schulze said on the phone to Zhou Yi, who was on vacation.

"Ninety million, Real Madrid is really a rich man. Zhou Yi grinned.

"If you look at your performance in the World Cup, many giants will think that 90 million is not expensive. Schulze laughed.

"Hmm...... Okay, so be it, I'll have to call Klopp. ”

"What are you calling him for?" Schulze wondered.

"I promised him that if I were to leave, I would tell him the news myself. ”

After Zhou Yi hung up Schulzer's phone, he turned to Jurgen Klopp's name in the address book.

He hesitated, but dialed the number under the name.

Soon Klopp's sleepy voice sounded over there: "Oh my God, Zhou Yi." Do you know what time it is in Germany?"

"Sorry to bother you, Coach. But we agreed ......," Zhou Yi said.

"Agreed...... What?" Klopp clearly hadn't woken up yet, his brain was wooden.

"If I'm leaving, I promise I'll tell you personally, and it's the first time. ”

"What?!ouch!hmm......" There was a garbled voice on the other side of the phone. "Hell!"

"What's wrong with you, Coach, are you okay?"

"No, I'm not good, but not because I hit the goddamn bedside, but because I heard you......" Klopp fell asleep.

"Sorry, coach. Real Madrid threw me an olive branch and it was an invitation that was hard to refuse......"

There was no sound on the other end of the phone, so Zhou Yi had to ask again: "Coach, are you there?"

"I'm ......," Klopp's voice was tired. "It's not the first time that the core of our team has been poached by Real Madrid. Dortmund never seemed to escape such a fate......"

"It's different from the last time, coach. I didn't leave Dortmund for the sake of honours, where I had won almost every honour I could take, two Champions League titles, and the second one was snatched from Real Madrid. I'm just looking for a new challenge, coach. Real Madrid is in Spain, where there are Simeone's Atletico Madrid and Barcelona, and I want to go there for a new challenge. Zhou Yi told his thoughts truthfully.

"I know you're different from Shaheen. So I'm not going to stop you from leaving, and I'm not going to complain about you. You've done well enough in Dortmund, you don't owe Dortmund anything, you can go on a new purpose in life, you're only twenty-three years old...... There are so many possibilities for your future......" Klopp muttered, seemingly a little distracted, but he quickly recovered from the momentary distraction. "Real Madrid is a real giant, such a giant deserves you, so it's no problem to go to Real Madrid, as long as they give enough transfer fees, I believe Dortmund will not be embarrassed by your transfer ......"

"Uh, coach. In fact, Real Madrid intends to directly activate the repudiation clause in my contract......"

"Ninety million euros?" Klopp was stunned for a moment, then said in a semi-mocking tone, "I said that I shouldn't have promised to set any breach money in your contract in the first place...... Otherwise, we can at least sell you for 100 million now!"

Zhou Yi smiled: "I don't make Mr. 100 million euros, I also regret it." ”

The joke eased the sentimental sentiment between the two sides, and Klopp said: "I'm glad Zhou Yi you still remember what we said at the beginning, if you hadn't reminded me, I might have forgotten it myself." Anyway, I'm happy to be able to coach you for five seasons...... It was Dortmund's best five seasons. ”

"It's also my ......," Zhou Yi said.

But he was interrupted by Klopp.

"No, not yours. You're only twenty-three years old, and you'll have more and better times ahead of you. I wish you all the best at Real Madrid, and if we meet again, I don't want you to show mercy, just a hug. ”

"I will, Coach, I promise I'll give you a hug. ”

"Well, then...... Now, can I go back to sleep?"

"Ah, sorry to bother you for so long. Good night, coach. ”

"Good night, Zhou Yi, this may be the last time you call me 'coach'. After speaking, Klopp hung up the phone without waiting for Zhou Yi to respond.

Zhou Yi looked at his phone, and his ears seemed to be echoing the last sentence that Klopp had just said.

It was Jurgen Klopp who discovered him, and when Barcelona and Arsenal were also interested in him, it was he who flew to Barcelona to talk to him and made a promise to himself for the future. And then he kept his promise.

The outside world may have a lot of opinions and comments about Klopp.

But for Zhou Yi, Klopp is his Bole.

In the future, no matter what team he goes to, no matter what team Klopp goes to, Zhou Yi will still call him "coach". Because he really is his own coach, and always has been.

※※※

"There was a sensational news in the transfer market yesterday - Dortmund Club officially announced that they had received Real Madrid's offer of 90 million euros from Zhou Yi, which has matched the amount of Zhou Yi and Dortmund Club's contract breaking clause, so as long as Zhou Yi and Real Madrid reached an agreement, Dortmund can only and must release him...... As Dortmund is a listed club, they have to truthfully disclose any news that may involve share price fluctuations, so this transfer news should be true......"

In fact, since leading Borussia Dortmund to defend the Champions League, Zhou Yi has no shortage of suitors for giants. However, during the World Cup, Zhou Yi closed all transfer communication channels and played the World Cup with peace of mind...... Now that the World Cup is over, he can naturally negotiate with clubs that are interested in him. He's not just a Real Madrid suitor......"

"Real Madrid lost to Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League final last season. And Real Madrid is the Champions League for two consecutive seasons at the feet of Zhou Yi...... If you can't beat him on the pitch, you just poach him and make him one of your own, which is very much in line with Real Madrid's style. However, it also shows that Zhou Yi has completely convinced Real Madrid......"

According to well-informed sources, Real Madrid has reached an agreement with Zhou Yi on a personal contract, and they can officially join as long as the transfer operation between the clubs is completed. This will be a milestone in the history of Chinese football, the first time that a Chinese player has joined Real Madrid, the giants of the century......"

"Real Madrid not only bought Zhou Yi this summer, but also brought in Bayern Munich midfielder Toni Kroos, which speaks volumes about their ambitions. It seems that after the failure to hit the tenth crown of the Champions League. Real Madrid decided to speed up the process of the impact...... Zhou Yi is 23 years old and Toni Kroos is 24 years old, and these two core midfield players who are each other's main and bitter enemies in the Bundesliga will join forces at Real Madrid, and they are likely to become Real Madrid's midfield combination for the next decade......"

※※※

When Zhou Yi stood on the rostrum at the Bernabeu Stadium, below him were more than 50,000 Real Madrid fans and hundreds of journalists, most of whom were from China.

Beside him was the president of Real Madrid, Mr. Pérez Florentino, and the two of them had just posed for a photo with the number 23 shirt of Real Madrid with his name on it – just as he did in Dortmund and the Chinese national team, the number 23 will be his number at Real Madrid.

And this number was once worn by David Beckham in Real Madrid, and it has become no longer ordinary from an ordinary number in the Real Madrid team.

Then Zhou Yi put his shirt aside, facing the tens of thousands of Real Madrid fans below, he gave his first speech to join Real Madrid.

"I know that Real Madrid is the greatest club in the world and playing at such a big club will be under a lot of pressure and face a lot of critical eyes, but for me that's exactly why I came to Real Madrid – I want a new challenge. I'm here to win the championship and be successful, and I do what I say!Hala_Madrid!"

The Real Madrid fans welcomed the player who had just beaten them in the Champions League final with loud applause and cheers.

In the Champions League final, they must have booed Zhou Yi. But now they cheered for him.

Seeing Zhou Yi's performance in the World Cup, any smart Real Madrid fan can realize what changes Zhou Yi's joining can bring to the team.

The benefits definitely outweigh the disadvantages, the grievances of the past have been written off, and now they are people in the same boat, striving for the same goal.

In this way, Zhou Yi, who joined Real Madrid for 90 million euros, became the king of the European transfer market this summer.

As for the story of the "standard king" Zhou Yi after joining Real Madrid?

The whole world knows about it......

(End of book)

※※※

PS, eight o'clock in the evening, update the postscript, this book is officially finished, thank you for being with you all the way!