Green Field Eunuch

Chapter 27 Austrian Bundesliga Chinese Derby
The media are worried about the future of Kaffinburg.

Kaffinburg has no worries at all. Chairman Fuchs is even fantasizing about how much transfer fee Shan Yongzhuo will bring to the club.
In fact, they had received offers from several clubs during the winter.

Bundesliga side FC Köln offered €500 million for Shan Yongzhuo, Hannover 96 offered the same price, and the highest offer came from Serie A side Udinese, who offered €700 million.

This price really appealed to Old Fuchs.

That's 700 million euros!

That's enough to cover Kafenberg's salary expenses for one or two years, making it arguably the biggest transfer in Kafenberg's history.

However, at the time, Shan Yongzhuo's agent, Kroos, clearly expressed that Shan Yongzhuo did not want to leave the team, which dispelled Fuchs's idea.

“Irving, I still think we shouldn’t let Dan go this summer. Maybe he doesn’t even want to leave.” Kinney was very dissatisfied with old Fuchs’s idea, but there was nothing she could do.

She understood that her father had no football dreams; Kaflenberg was just one of his businesses, and he didn't mind using the club as a tool to make money.

Old Fuchs thought for a moment and said, "You're right. If it's just that he wants to stay, there's nothing we can do."

“Of course.” Old Fuchs changed the subject, saying, “For a true genius like him, a price of 700 million euros might not be enough to reflect his ability. If it could be higher…”

“Owen, don’t forget,” Kinnice reminded him, “if we maintain this performance, we can play in the Europa League qualifiers next season. Without it, we wouldn’t be able to make it to the group stage.”

"That's the Europa League after the expansion of the UEFA Cup. There are quite a few prizes just for playing in the group stage."

Old Fuchs' eyes darted around, as if he had thought of something. "You're right, Kinnice. We should think further ahead. Let's let Shan decide for himself. If he wants to leave, the club won't stop him. If he wants to stay, Kaffinburg will always be his home."

"..."

Kinney was somewhat speechless about old Fuchs, but in fact, Kinney also had her own troubles.

She hoped that Shan Yongzhuo could stay in Kafenberg, and even better if Shan Yongzhuo performed even worse, perhaps only able to play a position between the starter and the substitute.

In that case, it would be difficult for him to be noticed by other teams, and he would have to stay in Kaffinburg.

"By then, he shouldn't keep keeping me at arm's length anymore..."

That's all Ginniko could think, but she knew it was unlikely.

Shan Yongzhuo was unaware of these things, and even if he had, he wouldn't have cared.

For him, staying in Kaflenberg is quite good. He is very familiar with the place, has familiar teammates, and is the star striker. Everyone will play around him.

However, leaving is not unacceptable, after all, the Austrian Bundesliga is a bit small, with low salaries, little influence, and very few matches to play.

Next, Kaffinburg went to Vienna again to challenge Austria Vienna.

This is the 31st round of the league.

This match greatly excited Chinese journalists because Sun Xiang also started the game, which meant that the Austrian Bundesliga had its first-ever Chinese derby.

Sun Xiang rose to fame with Shanghai Shenhua and was loaned to Dutch giants PSV Eindhoven in 2007, becoming the first Chinese player to appear in the Champions League.

However, his performance in Eindhoven was not recognized, and he was loaned to Vienna, Austria before the start of this season.

Sun Xiang's performance in the first half of the season was not outstanding. However, starting in March, he seemed to find his form and played better and better. As a full-back, he scored in three consecutive games and gradually won the trust of the team's head coach.

However, his performance was far inferior to that of his compatriot Shan Yongzhuo.

Walking through the players' tunnel, the two greeted each other with smiles.

Shan Yongzhuo had no recollection of this senior; even before his transmigration, he had long forgotten that such a person existed in the national football team. Sun Xiang, however, had a different feeling.

Seeing his fellow countryman, who was only 18 years old, become the top scorer in the Austrian Bundesliga, Sun Xiang also felt immense pressure.

While feeling happy for his compatriots, he also felt that he couldn't fall too far behind, which was a source of pride for him as a senior.

However, after the match started, the two didn't have many opportunities to face each other.

Sun Xiang is a right-back and is good at making forward runs and crossing, while Shan Yongzhuo spends most of his time in the middle, making it difficult for him to directly match up with Sun Xiang.

However, the two still have a chance to face off.

In the 19th minute of the first half, Shan Yongzhuo had mastered the skill of the powerful leg kick, and Kafmburg launched an attack. Shan Yongzhuo would move to the edge of the penalty area to receive the ball, and the opposing defender Madu was unable to keep up, so Sun Xiang came over to help defend.

However, Shan Yongzhuo unleashed a powerful shot, which, despite Sun Xiang's leg blocking it, deflected and went directly into the goal.

After scoring, Shan Yongzhuo didn't celebrate. Instead, he walked up to Sun Xiang and asked seriously, "Brother Sun, is this goal yours or mine?"

Sun Xiang's face darkened. "It should be yours, right..."

"That's great."

Shan Yongzhuo went to celebrate with a smile.

Sun Xiang could only shake his head with a wry smile.

The goal was heading straight for the goal, and although it deflected, according to the rules, it still counts as a goal by Shan Yongzhuo.

Of course, this is a good thing.

After all, Shan Yongzhuo did not play in the second round of the league match against Kafenberg, and Sun Xiang scored an own goal in that match, which resulted in the team being held to a 2-2 draw by Kafenberg.

If another blunder occurs, it won't be a good thing.

Regardless, Sun Xiang still witnessed the extraordinary shooting ability of this younger player.

He had been following Shan Yongzhuo's performance and knew that the opponent was of average physical condition, average speed, and average technique. He could be described as a striker with no outstanding skills, but his shooting technique was exceptional. Austrian media even boasted that his shooting was comparable to that of the world's top strikers.

Meanwhile, domestic media outlets are boasting that Shan Yongzhuo has reached the level of a top-tier striker and is capable of playing for teams in the top five European leagues.

Sun Xiang still has reservations about this, because he knows the level of domestic players.

The footwork of the world's top strikers?
This is unlikely to happen to a domestic football player.

Moreover, he was well aware of how difficult it was to establish himself in the top five leagues. Without physicality, technique, or even speed, he could only rely on his good shooting technique.
This is unlikely.

As for why Shan Yongzhuo scored so many goals, Sun Xiang summarized it as the support from the entire Kafmburg team, which created too many opportunities for him.

But now, he's starting to believe the media's claims. The shot was flawless in terms of power, speed, and angle; even if he hadn't blocked it, it would have been very difficult to save.

Moreover, this was not a particularly good opportunity at all. Not only was the distance from the goal not close, but the angle of space was also not large. What's more, Shan Yongzhuo was shooting directly without stopping the ball, so you can imagine how difficult it was.

Moreover, Sun Xiang didn't see the support of the entire Kafnburg team. This guy can be said to be detached from the tactical system. Apart from scoring goals, sometimes it's even unclear what the point of him staying on the field is.

Now, Sun Xiang is quite certain that his footwork is indeed as the media described.

Of course, Sun Xiang also hoped that was the case, otherwise he would have to take the blame for conceding the goal.

(End of this chapter)