Becoming a football god from Arsenal

Chapter 239: The public opinion changes! The highest salary in the Premier League? Wembley vs. Chelsea! The Beatles at Wembley
"Another increase of 30m! Maher's value has reached 135m, tied with Messi for the world's first place!" - Latest news from BBC

"Arsenal's entire team value has skyrocketed by 130m, officially entering the first tier of the world football value list!" Sky Sports Club Column
After the latest Transfermarkt price update, the increase or decrease in the value of most players did not attract the attention of fans. Almost everyone focused their attention on Maher at the first moment.

They were even too lazy to go watch their home team or their favorite players first. They just wanted to get together and talk about Maher and see what others thought about it.

Arsenal also attracted their attention and became the most eye-catching team that night.

However, in the comment section of the report related to "Mael's latest value", we can see that the fans' comments are polarized, some praise him to the extreme, while others question him wildly.

“The best talent in history!”

"The Aix genius has finally stood in the position that truly belongs to him! Professionals in the football world have finally given the Arsenal Demon the evaluation he deserves!"

"At 19, he's worth 135m! If he can keep this up until he's 21, won't he have a chance to reach 150m?!"

"Messi has created more than 100 goals in a single season. Maher seemed to have scored more than 70 last season. Could it be that one goal in the European Cup is equal to three goals? Reaching the top at the age of 1, can it be more outrageous?"

"I don't understand what's so questionable. Such a talented young player, his performance and championship-winning speed are reaching the level of Messi and Ronaldo very quickly. He's less than 135m!"

“Isn’t that outrageous?
“There are many players who have great performances in a continental tournament, but many of them cannot even continue their form from last year after returning to the league. They will decline under pressure until they are no longer in the same league.

"I'm not saying Maher will fade into obscurity, he's unlikely to.

"It's just that the transfer window is too arbitrary, putting the player in a position that doesn't belong to him. This is more than Ronaldo's accumulation over the years, and it's really hard to hold on."

"That's right! Transfermarkt never increased the value of players who had explosive performances in a single tournament. They just raised their psychological expectations for the players and then slowly increased the value after observing their performances when they returned to the club!
"I've never seen anyone rush to add 30 meters right after a race. I think 105 meters is the best affirmation for him. These 30 meters are obviously redundant and seem to be deliberately creating topics."

"Is Maher the same as those people who are so crazy? He won all four best events and broke the historical record to win the championship. Your argument is totally untenable!"

"."

Judging from some of the comments with the highest number of likes, many people look at this matter from their own perspectives, and they all represent the groups behind them.

There are fans of Mahre and fans of Melo. In short, only a small number of people make objective evaluations, and they cannot occupy the mainstream vision.

This is quite normal, as the spiritual sustenance of their respective fan groups, major events in the superstars' careers and changes in their circumstances can easily lead to emotional changes in their fan groups.

In addition, the current superstars are in competition with each other, and it is difficult for their fan groups to live a peaceful life like the retired superstars, appreciate each other, and remember the people who accompanied their youth together.

They often start quarreling over just one thing. They can still remain rational at the beginning, but as time goes by, the resentment becomes deeper and deeper, and they can say anything when they get angry.

This can be seen from the fans of Melo. Among them, there are people who appreciate each other, people who only pay attention to their favorite stars, and people who do not participate in discussions.

But the quarrels surrounding the relevant reports are always around and always lead the main direction of public opinion.

Perhaps only when the two geniuses retire will most of their fans shake hands and make peace, sit together and laugh about that passionate era, the era when talented people emerged in large numbers and Messi and Ronaldo stood out from the crowd.

In short, the direction of public opinion today is definitely different from the past!
Even though Maher had long been called the third best player in the world and a strong contender for the best, he had never caused such a huge sense of crisis among Melo's fans before.

After he won the Premier League title, Melo's fans were not in a hurry because their favorite stars also won La Liga or Premier League titles.

After winning the European Cup, they are not in a hurry, as Messi and Ronaldo are multiple champions with the Champions League.

As for the fact that Maher's data and potential are even more explosive than the previous third place in the world and that he is gradually approaching Melo in all aspects, this fact is selectively filtered out by their brains.

They don't want to face this problem until the day comes when they officially surpass or are basically on par with each other.

But they never expected that 'that day' would come so soon!
When Maher topped the important list of Transfermarkt with an unstoppable momentum, and when he officially had the strength and performance to threaten the status of Melo in the eyes of many professionals,
Some of Melo's fans found it difficult to accept this for a while and were inevitably panicked.

Sensing the crisis, they rarely joined forces and made some questioning comments about the price.

In the short term, this probably won’t cause them to have deep animosity with Maher’s fan base.

But if this competition and confrontation continues, it is only a matter of time before the public opinion war in the football world officially develops from a battle between two giants to a battle between three.

In any case, the direction of public opinion on this day indicated from all angles that Maher's value and he himself have entered a new stage. This may be a signal that he has officially started his fight with Melo.

Just like Arsenal, they ranked third in the world early on, and on this day they narrowed the gap with the top two and officially reached the table in the first tier!

They will no longer be squeezed out of the top two rows, but it is really possible for them to improve their ranking at any time and change the landscape of world football!

A brand new era has begun, and a new grand chapter and splendid feast of football has quietly begun amid waves of quarrels!

Perhaps many people did not realize it on this day, but looking back many years later, they may feel that this was an unusual day.

On August 8, Arsenal's major official websites and retail stores all launched the club's new season jerseys, including home and away jerseys as well as a third away jersey, as well as many small souvenir items.

Fans quickly and enthusiastically snapped up the first batch of goods, and also pre-ordered their favorite stars' jerseys and peripheral products on the online store.

This is a way for them to support the team. Many people buy an authentic jersey of the home team and some peripheral items every season.

Maybe one or two such people won't bring much financial revenue to the team, but tens of thousands and hundreds of thousands are different.

After last season's improved performance, Arsenal fans and travelers to and from London all recognize the team's value and are willing to spend money on the team.

Don't underestimate their spending power. Teams with the best brand value, such as Real Madrid and Manchester United, can sell around 300 million jerseys every season.

This means an income of more than 3 million pounds. Excluding the share of profits, there is still about 4000 million pounds. If you take into account the small peripheral products that sell well, it is not difficult to make 1 million pounds from this aspect in a season.

"More than 29 pieces! Arsenal's sales on the first day were extremely hot, setting a record high! Among them, Maher's jerseys sold 13 pieces! Nearly half of the team!" - The Guardian

"Is it possible to sell 300 million jerseys in a single season? Since Maher joined, Arsenal has continued to rise in all aspects, and the rapid growth of the players has also radiated to this club!" - "France Football"

"This collective growth is incredible and makes Maher even more enviable." - AS

On August 8, another big news came. Arsenal officially announced the launch of two special edition jerseys for Maher.

They are respectively a commemorative jersey commemorating his 100th career goal and a commemorative jersey summarizing his season as a double champion and record holder. The prices are 249 pounds and 349 pounds, which are higher than ordinary jerseys and are more exquisitely made.

As soon as the news came out, the fan circle was ignited again. Many Arsenal fans rushed into the stores to buy the products. Even many Maher fans who were not Arsenal fans started an unprecedented buying craze.

At noon, his commemorative jersey was still on display as a special edition in the corners of the club's official website and offline stores.

By night, it is already placed in the most conspicuous position, so that fans who come into the store to buy can see it at first glance and make it easier to choose.

Late at night, Kroenke Jr. sat in the team chairman's office, looking through the data sent by major stores with Wenger.

Former chairman Hill-Wood had long been dismissed, and Kroenke Sr. took over the position of chairman, but handed over the daily operations of the team to Kroenke Jr., who only showed up at key decision-making times.

Although Kroenke Jr. has great ambitions and experience accumulated from his family's other sports businesses, he still lacks understanding of Arsenal and European football culture, so he always calls Wenger to handle matters together.

Wenger naturally accepted this with pleasure and devoted more time and energy to the club. After all, this also meant that he had greater power and voice.

"1.62 pieces sold offline, this is obviously not the limit of Maher's influence, but the limit of the supply speed and hot stamping machine."

Kroenke looked at the data sheet with joy and was in a very good mood. "There are 7.43 pieces online in total, including 4.32 in the European market, 1.31 in the North American market, 9.3k in South America, and 8.7k in Asia, Oceania and Africa."

Wenger did not respond to Kroenke Jr., but shock appeared on his face. It was definitely impossible for the two of them to look at all problems from the same perspective.

The other party may be more satisfied and happy about the sales data, but he is more unbelievable about the buying spree that has been set off by the player Maher.

This kind of shock from the heart requires time to digest, and it is enough to make him think deeply. To what heights will this club reach under Maher's influence?
Although they seemed to have seen the shadow of the mountain top, he felt that this might not be the end for Mael and them.

Although successful clubs like Real Madrid and Manchester United stopped there, and Melo also stopped there looking down at other players, a looming ladder leading to a higher place appeared before them.

It was a brand new road, a road that no one had ever walked on!

"In just these two days, Maher has generated sales of more than £2 million, which is almost half of his total jersey sales last season."

Kroenke Jr. looked at Wenger's expression and put more attention on Maher. He stood up and paced while saying, "It seems that as long as we market him with all our heart, he will definitely create more value.

"As long as we seize the opportunities he brings, we will seize the opportunities for the future of the club."

Wenger looked up after hearing this and asked, "Has the amount been calculated for this last season? How much can he get?"

"Three million pounds."

Kroenke turned around and said with a smile: "I took a look today. The jersey and peripheral sales included in the contract are the biggest part, and his share of this is 8%.

"As for the special edition jerseys and peripherals that Hillwood and you signed a 50% profit share agreement for, although the sales were also very impressive, due to the late release, more sales are counted in this season."

Wenger was even more shocked, and then he smiled with admiration. "I have never coached a player with such a high ability to make money. Not Henry, not Bergkamp."

“He is epoch-making.”

Kroenke Jr. agreed with a smile. His love for Maher was growing. Thinking of something, he suggested, "The salary increase contract is about to start negotiations. Why not give him this income first?"

The share in this regard was originally scheduled to be settled at the end of the third quarter, which is the end of September.

He wanted to settle the bill early, naturally hoping that making an exception for the players would win their favor and thus create a more friendly negotiation environment.

"can."

Wenger nodded in agreement, but still reminded: "After our analysis, we feel that Mendes will not mention the renewal of the contract to five years this time. He will keep the existing four-year contract and only ask for a substantial increase in salary and bonuses.

"With everything they have now, they do have the capital to make such a request to the club."

“And we have to be satisfied.” Kroenke Jr. added with a wry smile and shrugged, “Isn’t it?”

With other players receiving significant salary increases, it is impossible for the salary of the team's most critical figure, Maher, not to increase.

Otherwise, once there is a rift with the players and agents, the club's rapid development may be affected at any time, or even stagnate or regress.

Mendes must know this, so he will definitely not renew his contract.

And considering Maher’s current value, if he is to be contracted for the full five years, the price he has to pay cannot be just the maximum salary.

Wenger also laughed, but without a bitter face, "Yes, fortunately we have been mentally prepared for it."

Kroenke held his chin up and thought for a while before saying, "It can be confirmed that he is the highest paid player in the Premier League, surpassing Tevez's 25 pounds, but it will be around 30 or more. It depends on the final negotiation."

Wenger nodded and looked away. He remembered that when he first came here, the maximum salary of the players was only around 3 to 4 pounds.

Unexpectedly, after more than ten years, the maximum salary is about to exceed 30 pounds. But this time, he is no longer a bystander. The person who is about to get the highest salary in the Premier League is an Arsenal player.

On August 8th, there are only three days left until the start of the Community Shield.

On the training ground near his home, Maher glanced at his watch while doing some fancy skills training and found that there was only one hour left before the signing date agreed upon with Procter & Gamble.

“Bang, bang. bang!”

He quickened his pace, hoping to complete the final points of proficiency in his 'fancy skills' in this afternoon's training and achieve improvement.

At the beginning, his mind was a little confused and the training effect was average. Halfway through, he realized that haste makes waste, so he calmed down again and completed each training movement meticulously.

This should be the last skill that can be upgraded before the Community Shield final. The rest will have to be improved slowly after the start of the Premier League season.

"Snapped!"

During a stop, he bent his body and sucked the ball steadily in front of his right chest. Then he straightened his body and shook it, bouncing the ball in front of him. Then he made two quick changes of direction with his right foot in the air, caught up with his body and stopped the ball on the ground.

It was also at this moment that he felt some changes in his body.

[Skills: Fancy Skills lv3]

[Proficiency: (1/1500)]

[Effect: After improving your ability to combine with the ball, you seem to have mastered all the fancy skills, but many skills are only learned superficially, and there is still a long way to go before you can truly achieve them! ]

Promoted!

One step away from 4-star fancy!
Now, he can’t say that he has the same elegant playing style as Ronaldinho, but at least he has some ability to play with defenders like Neymar at his peak.

Moreover, the purpose of practicing this skill is certainly not just to look cool. In certain small scenarios, it can help him break the situation unexpectedly.

He will not delete this additional skill from his training plan, he will continue to practice it until it reaches level 4, helping him to have a complete 4-star fancy!
"Oh!"

Maher kicked the ball happily into the five-a-side goal in the distance, then quickly ran home to take a quick shower and change clothes. After that, he drove his Ferrari to the agreed location.

During the process, he also took a look at the proficiency panel and found that his proficiency in both dribbling shots and long passes had exceeded 1000.

The next two skills to complete the upgrade are definitely these two.

By then, he will have 3 level 5 skills, which will be a huge improvement!

"Buzz!" Amid the roar of cars, he rushed to the center of London, met Mendes, and walked into a high-end restaurant together.

More than an hour later, the two walked out together with happy smiles on their faces.

All three brands under Procter & Gamble successfully completed the signing, and the final transaction price was a one-year contract worth 900 million pounds, and a total of 1 million pounds for three years!

All three brands have increased their transaction prices, but the bonus contracts offered by each one are lower, and when added together they barely exceed the bonus contracts of Dior and the other two companies.

But this is understandable. After all, they belong to the same parent company, and it is definitely unlikely that they would offer three high bonuses separately.

"In the beginning, your only source of bonus was the club."

Mendes got into Maher's Ferrari soon after, as if to get a feel for the new car, and kept laughing as he said, "Later, there were Lays chips and beer, and then there was Puma.

"Later, it was Louis Vuitton, Coca-Cola, and Pepe clothing.

"Today, we add Emirates Airlines, Dior perfume, three Procter & Gamble brands, and Ferrari."

Maher touched the steering wheel with one hand and put on sunglasses with the other hand. "There are too many to count. I'll ask the company to make a report for me someday. I want to see how much bonus I will get if I win any award."

"it is good."

Mendes also put on sunglasses, enjoying the cool feeling of riding in a sports car. Soon he turned around and said: "I just did a simple calculation for the upcoming Community Shield, and you should get about 180 million pounds after tax.

"If you are the best player in the final, you will receive an additional £50 bonus from Puma, so the final prize should be £210 million."

"So much?" Maher smiled brightly, the Community Shield is one of the pieces of his England Grand Slam puzzle, but it is a bit tasteless compared to other major competitions. He didn't expect that it is still possible to get 245 million pounds.

It is conceivable what kind of generous bonus he will receive if he wins another important championship and personal honor now!
"Yeah." Mendes also found it incredible. "How about it? Do you have the confidence to raise Puma's superimposed bonus for the new season to 500 million pounds before the Premier League starts?"

"of course."

Maher stepped on the accelerator, feeling the passionate push on his back, and shouted excitedly, "Oh! I want Puma to pay me more than 2000 million pounds starting from next season!"

On August 8, as the Community Shield final approached, more and more news about it came out.

"Chelsea, the FA Cup and Champions League double champions, are about to compete with Arsenal, the Premier League and League Cup double champions! The London derby will be held at the greatest stadium in London!" - London Evening News

"Both teams have invested a large amount of money in signings this summer. Chelsea has spent over 2 million pounds, and if Arsenal signs Bale, they will also invest nearly 2 million pounds!" - Transfermarkt

"The Avengers are about to have their first head-to-head match with Maher! They will surely ignite the entire English football world and warm up for the upcoming new season!" - The Times can notice that in addition to paying attention to the game itself, fans are also paying attention to Maher's confrontation with Fabregas, Benzema and Ribery.

These four have a close relationship off the field, and they will meet at Wembley Stadium in the first game of this season, so naturally the fans are looking forward to some bloody scenes between them.

However, there are still two days to the final and the heat of this game has not yet been fully hyped up. More people are still discussing Maher's 2 million euro worth and Arsenal's recent value increase.

That afternoon, a fan cut out a clip from Messi's latest interview and posted it on major social media platforms.

"Mael's performance in the past year makes it hard to believe that he is an 18-year-old player. Do you feel pressured by the presence of such a player?" the reporter asked Messi directly.

Messi crossed his fingers and thought for a long time before saying: "I think there are many excellent players. I have been moving forward under pressure. Competition makes each of us better."

Such a roundabout answer obviously did not satisfy the reporter, and he then continued to ask a sharp question: "Do you think he will pose a threat to your fourth consecutive Ballon d'Or? He has performed very well this year."

"The Ballon d'Or judging process is very complicated and I can't judge."

Messi raised his eyebrows slightly. "Let's leave it to the professional judges. What we say is not authoritative."

The reporter sat up straight and asked directly with a dagger hidden in his smile: "Do you think he was stronger at the age of 18 than you were at the age of 18?"

This question is not easy to circumvent, because it is obvious that the 18-year-old Maher should be stronger than all the stars at 18. If Messi continues to beat around the bush, he will easily be labeled by the media as arrogant and unwilling to admit his mistakes.

Messi was silent for a while, and finally nodded: "Yes, he was better than me when he was 18 years old. At that time, I was only worth about 20m, which was far behind him."

After this report was released, it naturally attracted countless reposts from Maher's fans and became very popular for a while.

At noon the next day, when the pre-match atmosphere of the Community Shield was getting hotter and hotter, a clip of Ronaldo's interview was also exposed, which diverted the attention of most fans for a while.

"Do you think 18-year-old Maher is better than you?" A reporter asked Ronaldo the same question.

Ronaldo's reaction was almost the same as Messi's, but he was more prepared and the silence was shorter. He quickly nodded and said, "Yes!"

In just 2 days, it was recognized and approved by both companies.

This is enough to make Maher fans feel as happy as if it were the New Year, and makes them look forward to the upcoming game even more.

August 8th, competition day.

Arsenal's bus slowly drove out of the Colney base, passed through several streets along the way, and then made a special circle in the city center before heading to Wembley Stadium.

"Hit, look!"

"There's some over there too!"

As if they suddenly saw something, the players in the car were in a commotion, and many of them turned around and looked at Maher with a smile.

Wenger, Philip and others also noticed it, and smiled after looking out the window.

Mahel looked at them, took off his stress-relieving headphones, and curiously parted the curtains to look in the direction they were looking.

He was seen walking sideways in front of a Louis Vuitton flagship store, wearing brown clothes and carrying a square LV bag in his hand. There were also many close-up photos on both sides of him.

Next to this Louis Vuitton store is Puma's flagship store, with a huge paper model of the brand placed at the door.

"Buzz!" As the bus passed through another street, a row of magazine photos of him wearing a Pepe denim jacket were hung on the side of the street lamp in front. He was posing in many cool poses in the cameras.

This was not the end. Soon he saw the Dior endorsement cover and even the giant Coca-Cola posters on the doors of many supermarkets, which showed him drinking Coke with his head tilted back.

Just as Mendes said, after this time, he has appeared in every corner of the city streets with no blind spots!
I believe this is not only the case in London, but also in other cities.

He is now a business card figure in English football and sports, and his advertising endorsements can be seen everywhere.

Maher smiled shyly and put on his headphones again. How can you describe this feeling? There was the glory of being famous, but also the surprise and shame of suddenly seeing his own face from time to time.

"I walked 13 blocks and I saw one endorsement about me."

Van Persie, who was sitting in the front row, said sourly to Alexander Song next to him: "I have seen at least a dozen of his, some of which I have seen before, and some of which are obviously new."

"He is an international superstar now. How can you compare with him?"

Alexander Song looked back at Maher with some gratitude in his eyes. Regardless of anything else, Maher brought him two championships and also brought him a high-paying contract more quickly.

"Coming."

Wenger saw that they were about to start chatting and quickly reminded them: "Think about the game, kids."

No one spoke anymore, and the bus slowly approached Wembley Stadium in a silent atmosphere. Only then could the shouts of the fans be heard outside the window.

"We have Maher! We are the European champions! And you have nothing but money! The championship belongs to Arsenal!"

"You said we recognize the oligarchs as your fathers, but as soon as you hooked up with Walmart's son-in-law, you're eager to ask your father to help you buy someone! You are a bunch of cowards, you are a bunch of spineless red and white soft-footed shrimps!

"We just won the Champions League last year, and you have never won the Champions League. Ohohoh!!"

"Bang, bang, bang, beep. Beep!!"

You could hear the fans of the two teams singing songs and swearing at each other, and many people were banging drums and gongs and lighting blue and red smoke bombs.

Maher looked at them through the gap in the curtains, and saw Wembley Stadium in the distance, and his heart felt a little hot.

The first game of the new season has finally arrived. He can’t wait to put on the jersey and represent Arsenal in the game after a long time.

He wants to overthrow Chelsea and win the fifth championship of his career, the fourth of the year, and the third of the top four championships in the English professional system!
"Go Arsenal!!"

More than 30 minutes later, the players who had completed warming up at Wembley Stadium returned to the locker room. After listening to Wenger's final instructions, they clapped their hands and encouraged each other as they walked into the player tunnel.

Wearing the captain's armband, Maher stood in the front row in a match for Arsenal for the first time, feeling full of honor.

His eyes were fixed on the magnificent roof of Wembley Stadium, and he made no secret of his respect for the stadium and his desire for the championship.

He really likes to hold up the championship trophy in this stadium which is full of legends, and he looks forward to starting the new season in this way!

The Avengers banned by the media?
The newly crowned Champions League champions who spent 2 million pounds to strengthen their squad?
The former is just a child's play in his mind, and as for the latter, it will not bring him too much pressure. After all, he has also embarked on the journey of the new season full of honors!
What's more, he was waiting to use them to wash away the regret after losing the Champions League last year.

"Beep!"

"Aaahh!!"

"Maelmael.!!"

"Fabregas! Fabregas!"

Following the referee's two whistles, Maher walked out of Wembley Stadium holding the ball boy amid the cheers and excitement of the fans, waving his left hand to greet the Arsenal fans.

The midday sun is just right, perfect for holding up the round shield trophy high, reflecting the light to illuminate the faces of every Arsenal fan, allowing them to see the dawn of the new season!
“Dear viewers! Dear viewers! Welcome to watch the 12-13 season, the English Community Shield final!
"The two teams facing each other are Chelsea and Arsenal! Two teams with outstanding achievements. They won all the most prestigious championships in domestic football and European competitions last season!
“Even the European Cup held after the season was won by the French team, which was composed mainly of Arsenal players!
"Especially after the substantial reinforcements, these two teams are strong and confident.

"Their confrontation is definitely one of the most intense clashes in British and even European football this season!"

In the commentary booth, Zhan Jun and his old friend Zhang Lu sat here. As the main commentator, he then introduced the basic situation of the game, "Let's take a look at Chelsea's starting lineup. They played in a 442 formation today.

"Cech is still the goalkeeper, David Luiz and captain Terry are the two central defenders, Ashley Cole is the left back, and Ivanovic is the right back.

"The two midfielders are Fabregas and Mata, with Hazard on their left and Ribery on their right.

"In the forward position, the powerful new player Benzema will partner with Torres!"

"."

"Arsenal still chose a 4-3-3 formation today, which is basically the same as their formation and starting lineup in the warm-up match, except that Lori replaced Szczesny and stood on the goal line.

"Central defender is"

As soon as he finished his introduction, Zhang Lu couldn't help but laugh and joked: "I noticed that many players from both teams have been selected for the national teams that will face off against each other in the European Cup final this summer.

"However, Chelsea's two former French internationals have now confirmed their permanent retirement from the French national team.

"Their Spanish internationals are relatively pure, but one of them seems to have retired from the national team permanently after the European Cup final."

"Haha." Zhan Jun laughed out loud, realizing what Zhang Lu was teasing, "So, this is a different kind of Western-French battle with a lot of history!

"That's one of the reasons why this match is so interesting, there must be a lot of tension between them.

"The other highlight is that a total of eight players from both teams will be making their debut for their respective teams!
“David Luiz and Thiago Silva, the two central defenders of the Brazilian national team, will also face each other for the first time in the English arena!

The camera now turned to Maher, who was wearing the captain's armband. The sunlight shone on his right cheek, adding a few touches of light to him.

"Ouch."

Zhang Lu said in his very personal tone: "The young captain of both the French team and Arsenal team has returned with the honor of winning the European Cup and is about to start a new season!

"He is a key figure in this team and I think Chelsea still have a hard time defending him.

"Although Ivanovic is a popular player that all teams are vying for in the transfer market, he is slightly... um, slightly weaker than him."

As they were talking, players from both teams had already lined up on the field to shake hands.

Maher led the Arsenal players to the Chelsea team, smiling and high-fiving Terry first, followed by Cech, Ivanovic, Hazard and others.

When he came in front of the last few Chelsea players, he glanced at the end of the opponent's lineup and found that the three people nicknamed the Avengers by the media were standing neatly in the last three positions.

It didn't take much thought to know what they were going to do. Maher showed a scornful smile on his face, and after shaking hands with Ashley Cole, who was fourth from the bottom, he put his hand down and walked straight behind them.

And just as he expected, these three people were not prepared to shake hands with him. They kept their eyes fixed on Lori behind him and extended their hands in that direction.

Maher looked back at Lori and didn't say much. He believed that as a player of the French team, Lori knew something.

After raising and lowering his right hand stiffly twice, Lori finally withdrew his hand firmly and followed Maher.

Not even a shake!
Counterattack an army!
This instantly made Benzema, Ribery and Fabregas lose face, and the Arsenal players who came behind followed suit, and no one intended to shake hands with the three.

Cazorla, who has a milder temper and personality, wanted to shake hands out of courtesy, but was grabbed by Van Persie's shoulder and led away.

"Uu uh uh!"

Amid the mixed boos from fans of both teams, the three Avengers stood there awkwardly, their faces disheveled in the wind, and they had shot themselves in the foot.

The camera at the scene clearly recorded their expressions, and also captured Maher's smug smile when he turned around. The three people in the camera looked like the Three Idiots of Chelsea, while Maher looked frivolous and unrestrained.

“Na na na na na na na na na na na.!”

"Beep!!"

Soon after, all the fans sang the chorus of "Hey Jude" by the Beatles, the greatest British band, and the Community Shield final officially kicked off at Wembley Stadium!
Maher ran towards Chelsea's backcourt. Although he was a little disdainful of some players on this team, he would not underestimate the enemy.

He is still a long way from being invincible, but Chelsea, after reinforcements, is stronger than ever.

Facing such an opponent, the consequence of underestimating the enemy is bound to be loss.

He must go all out to win and get a good start to the new season!

In a box inside the stadium, Mendes and the heavily armed Real Madrid president Florentino sat and watched the game together.

"You should know something about Bale and Arsenal, right?" Florentino stared at the court and asked, "How far has it come?"

Mendes shook his head without hesitation, "I really don't know about this and can't give an answer."

"So... what do you suggest I do?" Florentino asked indirectly, hoping that Mendes could tell him whether to continue to fight Maher or start to increase the bet on Bale.

Mendes clenched his fists under the table, obviously in a dilemma, but his expression did not change. "Mr. Florentino is an expert in this area. I only do brokerage business and have no suggestions."

Seeing that he was unwilling to talk, Florentino shook his head slightly and did not ask any more questions.

This trip to London was just to have a chance to meet Maher privately.

It just so happened that the player had a match at Wembley Stadium, so he came over to take a look. If it was at the Emirates Stadium, he certainly wouldn't be so arbitrary during this sensitive period.

"Mendez."

After a while, Florentino turned back and stared at Mendes seriously, "You really don't want Maher to play with Ronaldo? They can win many honors together."

"To be honest, I don't really want to." Mendes answered without hesitation, his face serious, "Lafayette, I am the person closest to these two superstars. No one has ever known them at the same time. I have my own judgment.

“Ronaldo and Mahel could not have been teammates, especially when both were at their peak.

"They all have special pursuits, and in most cases there will only be one winner, so they are bound to go to opposite sides."

Florentino stared at Mendes with his eagle-like eyes, seeming to be hesitant to speak.

Mendes also looked at him and guessed that he might want to express what if he could sell Ronaldo to Maerten, but he didn't know how to say it.

He pretended to know nothing and turned his eyes to the court.

"What about you?" Florentino changed the subject and squinted his eyes. "The two of them are bound to go to opposite sides. You are caught in the middle. What are you going to do?"

"I do not know."

Mendes shook his head. He really didn't understand. "Mael has just reached a very high position. The confrontation has not happened yet, but to be honest, it will happen soon."

He smiled and raised his eyebrows, jokingly saying, "Maybe I can stay away from the possible conflicts between the two? Maybe they are both very generous and will never give me a choice between two options?"

"What if you screwed up? What if you can't have either of them?"

"." Mendes didn't say anything. He chuckled a few times and left the box temporarily on the pretext of something.

He didn't go far, but went down one level to the area of ​​small private rooms.

"Hi, my friend."

Soon, he walked into A14 and saw Guardiola and several data analysts from Bayern Munich sitting at the table with their computers.

"Hi." Guardiola turned around and said politely with a smile: "Why are you here so late? I thought you wanted to make an appointment."

"how could be?"

Mendes' expression changed quickly and he adjusted his state very well. He looked like he had just rushed in from outside the stadium, exhausted.

Looking at Guardiola who was unaware of the situation, he also thought of Florentino who was also unaware of the situation upstairs. He felt like a playboy who was dating two girlfriends at the same time in school.

If he fails, it could easily lead to a bad ending, but the excitement of it allows him to experience the feeling of having an affair without losing his morals.

(End of this chapter)