With maxed-out heading ability from the start, I became the king of Arsenal.

Sun Yu had planned to go to sleep that night, but when he saw the news in The Times while lying in bed, he jumped out of bed.

The news that he was shortlisted for the European Golden Boy award 40-person shortlist just one month into his professional career was quite unexpected for him.

The European Golden Boy award was established in 2003 by Tuttosport, with the main purpose of filling the gap in awards for young European players, according to the official statement.

Of course, this is definitely not the real purpose. Commercial media do things either for money or for influence; they cannot have any other purpose.

Meaning is given by people, but the internal driving force never changes.

As is widely known, Serie A was the undisputed number one league in the world in the last century.

Juventus, AC Milan, Inter Milan, Roma, Lazio, Florence, and Parma, collectively known as the "Seven Sisters of Serie A," form the most competitive league.

Many Serie A teams were very competitive in European competitions during those years. One Serie A team called Vicenza appeared in the European Cup Winners' Cup in the 1997-1998 season.

This team, composed entirely of local players, swept through the competition, eliminating Real Madrid and Bayern Munich, before being unfortunately defeated by eventual champions Chelsea by three goals in the semi-finals.

This is also Vicenza's only European competition record, and at that time, Italian A teams were proof of their strength.

But with Italy's economic growth coming to an end, Serie A also ended its leading position in Europe.

In the second year since the establishment of the European Golden Boy award, Serie A was overtaken by the Premier League in the Europa League points and lost its position as the top league in Europe.

By this time, Serie A's influence had begun to decline significantly, and Tuttosport knew very well that it would be difficult for the judging results to be convincing if it created the award on its own.

Therefore, they joined forces with twelve well-known European media outlets, including The Times, L'Équipe, Bild, and Marca, to select the winners and maintain the award's authority.

The Golden Boy award requires that the players be under 21 years old, play for a European club in the top league of their country, and can only be won once.

Sun Yu read the news carefully. The final list of 40 people who participated in the selection came from Tuttosport, and The Times reprinted it and added a long report.

Of the 40 players on the list, 9 are from the Premier League, 6 each from Serie A and Ligue 1, 5 each from the Bundesliga and La Liga, and 9 from other European leagues.

Sun Yu is indeed one of the nine players selected for the Premier League.

The Times made a special note about him: "The player did not meet the eligibility criteria when the 100-man shortlist was released this season, but on the eve of the selection of the 40-man shortlist, the selection committee decided to add him to the list after discussions because some players on the previous list no longer met the eligibility criteria due to club changes."

That makes sense.

Looking at the list, Sun Yu realized that this year was actually a big year for the Golden Boy Award.

The Times has compiled a list of ten leading candidates.

The ten players are Balotelli, Wilshere, Lukaku, De Gea, Pjanic, James Rodriguez, Hazard, Götze, Coutinho, and Kroos.

This is an absolute golden year for the Golden Boy award, with a large number of future stars emerging on this list.

Besides the popular players, the remaining players, including Eriksen, Huntelaar, Rojo, Bojan, Matip, Schürrle, M'Vila, Negredo, and Douglas Costa, have also left their mark on the world football scene.

In fact, Thomas Müller, Bale, and Neymar are from the same generation of players, except that the first two were just 21 years old and Neymar does not play in Europe.

Therefore, this year is a year with a large number of potential golden boys, both in terms of quality and quantity.

Of course, there are also flops like Bebe from Manchester United, a once-in-a-lifetime talent.

Ferguson, modeled after Cristiano Ronaldo, spent £740 million to buy a tall player from Portugal who had never played a professional match. This player appeared in training videos as an all-around warrior who could do everything.

Bebe has yet to make his Manchester United debut, and the fact that a player who hasn't even played in a professional league can be shortlisted for the Golden Boy award is simply because he plays for Manchester United.

Of the nine Premier League players shortlisted, three are from Manchester United, one each from Manchester City, Chelsea, Liverpool, Arsenal, and Aston Villa, with only Sun Yu coming from a mid-to-lower table team.

The situation is similar in other leagues, which shows that the vast majority of players are already signed by major clubs before they become famous.

But among the many future stars, Balotelli, who won the treble with Inter Milan and started in three World Cup matches, has basically secured the Golden Boy award.

While it's generally difficult for competitors to achieve similar statistics during the same period, Balotelli's record of 11 goals and 9 assists in 40 appearances is quite impressive.

The £2400 million transfer fee Manchester City paid this season also indirectly confirms his value.

After reviewing the list, Sun Yu gained a deep understanding of the selection criteria for various awards.

To be included in such a list, one must first obtain the endorsement of a powerful family.

Because elite clubs represent recognition in the football world, young players from elite clubs may have already achieved honors that other players could never attain in their entire lives when they are selected.

Sun Yu plays in the Premier League, and as long as he has outstanding performances and produces impressive statistics, he can be exceptionally included in the squad.

In other words, if Sun Yu delivers a sufficiently outstanding performance in the coming year, he could definitely compete for the Golden Boy award next season.

Of course, the prerequisite is that you can join a top club.

The Golden Boy award has been established for seven years, and the first seven winners were Van der Vaart, Rooney, Messi, Fabregas, Aguero, Anderson, and Pato.

Apart from Van der Vaart, who played for Ajax at the time, all the other players came from the top club.

The news of the Golden Boy Award gave Sun Yu a new goal—to join a wealthy family as soon as possible.

The saying "one step at a time" doesn't apply to young people who want to become top players.

Sun Yu's current goal is to maintain consistent output, perform exceptionally well in crucial battles, and join a major club next season.

If I don't win the Golden Boy award next year, it will be irrelevant to me. Top stars must shine at every stage of their lives.

The Times described Sun Yu's future development model as "a more athletic Bierhoff".

Bierhoff is now a German legend and a top-class header.

He didn't appear until the European Championship final at the age of 28, where he scored two goals to help Germany lift the European Championship trophy.

He became a top-class player and even beat Ronaldo to win the Serie A Golden Boot.

Interestingly, Bierhoff's goals were almost all headers, making him somewhat of an anomaly in the world of football.

From that night on, Sun Yu set a goal for himself: to find ways to score more goals.

Using impressive data to attract the attention of wealthy families, they continuously increase their chances of a bright future.

9 month 26 day.

Premier League Round 6.

Sun Yu remained on the bench as Stoke City played away against Newcastle, who were sixth in the Premier League.

Nolan opened the scoring for Newcastle with a penalty in the first half, but Jones equalized in the 67th minute.

Two minutes later, Pulis brought on Sun Yu and Delap simultaneously, and Stoke City launched a relentless attack on Newcastle.

In the 89th minute, Sun Yu squeezed past the defenders at the far post and headed in a throw-in from Delap.

2 is better than 1!

Stoke City secured three crucial points, tying Arsenal and Manchester City with 11 points, but finishing fifth in the Premier League only on goal difference.

10 month 2 day.

The seventh round of the Premier League.

Sun Yu was given a starting spot in Stoke City's home game against Blackburn Rovers.

In the 48th minute, Blackburn's center-back headed the ball back to the goalkeeper, and Sun Yu accelerated the instant the ball was headed in, scoring before the goalkeeper could react.

Stoke City ultimately defeated their opponents 1-0.

10 month 16 day.

Premier League Round 8.

Stoke City played away against Bolton, whose home team used a tactic that was very effective against Stoke City.

Lee Chung-yong scored the opening goal by outmaneuvering Hutt, while captain Shawcross scored an own goal.

2:0.

Seeing that the existing lineup was unlikely to break the deadlock, Pulis decisively replaced Walters with Sun Yu.

At the start of the second half, Stoke City launched a furious counterattack.

In the 74th minute, Sun Yu headed the ball to Delap during a header challenge, and the latter scored with a sliding shot.

2:1.

In the 84th minute, Sun Yu caused a defensive error during a header challenge, allowing Hui Lan to equalize with a header.

2:2.

Just when people thought Stoke City could pull off another comeback, Bolton scored a last-minute winner through Davies in stoppage time.

3:2.

Stoke City suffered their second defeat of the season.

In post-match interviews, English media tried to incite Sun Yu to question Pulis, but Sun Yu firmly stood by the head coach.

Two days later, after training, Pulis called Sun Yu aside and said, "I will start you in the next round. I have seen your performance. Keep it up."

Priss's words were simple, but Sun Yu saw unwavering trust in his eyes.

Sun Yu firmly believes that one should have a long-term vision, but when it comes to action, one must be down-to-earth.

He had a gut feeling that as long as he delivered a consistent performance, he could secure a starting position.

This starting lineup is crucial; Sun Yu is playing against Premier League giants Manchester United.

This is an opportunity fraught with enormous risk; if you don't perform well, you'll have to prove yourself in countless games.

But if he has a standout performance, Sun Yu is confident that he will be able to take off.

The endorsement of the Premier League champions is worth a fortune.