Chapter 14 A Good Omen

And so, every day after Zhou Yi finished training, he would see Schulze in a suit outside the training base. Schulze didn't try to persuade Zhou Yi to join his agent's company, nor did he mention making himself Zhou Yi's agent.

He would just walk with Zhou Yi for a while, chatting along the way. Then they would part ways at the next intersection.

And then come again the next day.

Sometimes Schulze even felt like he was chasing after a girl…

Afraid to bring up the subject of dating, only hoping to leave a good impression in the girl's mind.

As for Zhou Yi, he also thought it was nice to have someone to chat with every day. And Schulze was a very easy person to get along with, not pretentious. Being with him, Zhou Yi felt comfortable and at ease.

And so, time came to be two days before the fourteenth round of league play.

Today outside the training base, as soon as Zhou Yi saw Schulze, he said to him, "Mr. Schulze, I have good news to tell you."

"Oh? What is it? Tell me quickly!" Schulze looked very expectant.

"Well, I've been selected for the roster for the next game!" Zhou Yi said.

Schulze was stunned for a moment, then clapped his hands and laughed: "Congratulations, Zhou Yi! You totally deserve it! That's fantastic! Will you be playing?" He seemed even happier than Zhou Yi.

"Uh, it's hard to say. I personally think the chances of playing are still very low..." Zhou Yi scratched his head. "But I think it's great to be back on the eighteen-man roster, let's take it one step at a time."

"Of course, but if you get a chance to play, you must seize it, Zhou Yi! Make a name for yourself with one goal! Go for it!" Schulze said to Zhou Yi, clenching his fist.

Seeing Schulze so full of fighting spirit, Zhou Yi seemed to be infected as well, and he began to fantasize about becoming famous with one goal…

And Schulze was also there to help Zhou Yi imagine what would happen after he became famous: "The number of fans asking you for autographs here won't be so small then!"

They walked to the intersection where the two had to separate.

"Go for it, Zhou Yi. Strive for a good performance!" Schulze said.

Zhou Yi looked at him and asked, "Mr. Schulze, I have a question."

"Hmm?"

"If I perform well, I'm afraid you won't be the only agent who comes to me, right?"

Hearing Zhou Yi ask this question, Schulze was a little surprised.

"Won't you have competitors then? Why do you still want me to perform well?"

Schulze waved his hand: "Shouldn't an agent consider the players and hope that they are well? After all, from an economic point of view, the better the player performs, the more money they earn, and the more the agent earns. So of course I want you to perform well."

"But I might not choose you to be my agent, Mr. Schulze," Zhou Yi said sincerely.

Schulze also said sincerely: "Then even as a friend, I hope my friend performs well, isn't that normal?"

"Ah..." Zhou Yi suddenly understood.

"So, good luck with the game the day after tomorrow! I will watch the game live." Schulze clenched his fist and waved to Zhou Yi.

"You're making me think I'm already sure to play…"

"You will, you definitely will! It's my turn to make a prediction!" Schulze laughed.

"Then I accept your good omen, Mr. Schulze, thank you."

The two waved goodbye again at the intersection.

But even after Zhou Yi had walked out of sight, Schulze was still standing there, looking in the direction where Zhou Yi had disappeared.

He didn't know if he and Zhou Yi would ever see each other again after this goodbye.

If Zhou Yi could really play, and really perform well, Schulze had no doubt that many agent agencies would come to him. His potential was there, all he lacked was an opportunity to show it to everyone.

Schulze believed in his own judgment, he believed that he would not misjudge people.

Yes, perhaps many people were also optimistic about Zhou Yi, but they needed proof, but he didn't!

※※※

Zhou Yi told his parents by phone that he had been included in the eighteen-man roster for the next league game. At the same time, the domestic media also reported on it.

In fact, at first, the domestic media was quite concerned about Zhou Yi being able to enter the roster, and they would guess before each game. If Zhou Yi didn't make it, they would also stand up for Zhou Yi.

But later, as Zhou Yi didn't make the roster for seven consecutive league games, the Chinese media gradually cooled down.

They seemed to know that with Zhou Yi's current ability, it was still too early to want to enter the roster.

As a result, in the eighth round, Zhou Yi unexpectedly entered the roster, and the enthusiasm of the Chinese media reappeared, even starting to guess whether Zhou Yi would play in this game - at that time, fans and sports media across the country were waiting for Zhou Yi to play.

As a result, Zhou Yi was not able to play.

Subsequently, he did not enter the roster for several consecutive league games, and everything returned to the previous state, and the enthusiasm of the media did not last long.

Now, I am afraid that only a very small number of Zhou Yi's die-hard fans will still look forward to whether Zhou Yi can enter the roster in each round of the league.

But even the most die-hard fans dare not imagine playing in a game.

For them, it was already very gratifying that Zhou Yi could enter the roster. At least they could still see Zhou Yi's face during the live broadcast of the game, and maybe he would be hugged by the goalscorer?

This time, Zhou Yi was suddenly selected into the eighteen-man roster again. Although the Chinese media reported it, they had the experience of the last time, and they did not dare to guess whether Zhou Yi would play again, otherwise they would be slapped in the face by Klopp again…

※※※

Dortmund's away destination this time was Sinsheim, a name that sounds very unfamiliar.

In fact, Sinsheim is indeed just a small town with a total population of only 35,000 people. The population of this town may not be as large as the population of some residential areas in China.

And the actual location of Hoffenheim, Dortmund's opponent in this game, is even smaller - it is a village of the same name under the town of Sinsheim. This village has only 3,000 residents…

It was such a small village that created a staggering miracle in the first half of last season, they actually became the mid-season champions of the Bundesliga! If it hadn't been for the fact that their main striker Ibisevic tore his cruciate ligament in a warm-up match during the winter break and was seriously injured, withdrawing from the entire season, it would have been difficult to say who would have won the league title that season.

Also because of their performance last season, Dortmund no longer had to "bring a map and a magnifying glass" when they went to this team's home stadium to play - this is what *Bild* said when they introduced Hoffenheim at the beginning of last season.

Although Hoffenheim village, where the Hoffenheim club is located, has only 3,000 people, and the town of Sinsheim, where Hoffenheim village is located, has only 35,000 people, Hoffenheim's Rhein-Neckar Arena can accommodate 30,000 people, which is almost the entire population of Sinsheim…

Also because Hoffenheim village is too small, a stadium that can accommodate 30,500 people cannot be built there, so the club built the home stadium in Sinsheim.

Although Hoffenheim collapsed in the second half of last season and only finished seventh, one place higher than Dortmund.

But their performance has been very good since the beginning of this season. After thirteen rounds of the league, Hoffenheim has seven wins, two draws and four losses, ranking fourth. So far, their performance is still very good. In the last round of the league, Hoffenheim had just won 4:0 against Cologne on the road, and their morale was high.

Dortmund, on the other hand, had failed to win in two consecutive league games, and with another away game, it was not going to be easy.

※※※

Before the start of the game between Dortmund and Hoffenheim, Zhou Yi's warm-up shots had already appeared in the live broadcast program of the domestic TV station. Seeing Zhou Yi and his teammates wearing Dortmund coats warming up, commentators Duan Xin and Tao Wei couldn't help but talk about whether Zhou Yi would play, after all, seeing him would remind them of this.

"I think it's possible." Tao Wei said. "Hoffenheim has been in good shape recently, and they have the advantage of playing at home. If Dortmund encounters difficulties in the game, they will make adjustments. So how will they adjust? I think it's very likely that they will start from the midfield. In fact, Klopp has made the most substitutions in the midfield in many previous games. Compared to the front line, Dortmund has more choices in the midfield. And he brought Zhou Yi to the away game, but Gotze, another genius who came on as a substitute in the last game, didn't come. With Gotze not coming, Zhou Yi has one less competitor."

"But Coach Tao, your analysis is based on the premise that Dortmund will encounter difficulties. But what if Dortmund doesn't encounter difficulties?" Duan Xin asked.

Tao Wei spread his hands: "Then we can only see him on the bench."

"Then, Coach Tao, what do you think of Zhou Yi's current ability?"

"I haven't watched his games, after all, he has participated in warm-up matches with the first team. But those warm-up matches were not broadcast live in China. But I think honors can explain the problem. In the youth team, Zhou Yi is the team's absolute main player and core, he helped the Dortmund youth team win two very important championships, and he also completed a hat-trick in the league finals. I think this at least shows that Zhou Yi is a player with a big heart."

Duan Xin nodded and said, "Well, he was born for big occasions."

"Yes, we can also see from the reports in the domestic media that Zhou Yi has always had a good attitude and has not complained because he has not been able to play in consecutive games. He has also been working hard in training every day. I think Klopp put him on the roster again this time, perhaps because Zhou Yi's usual training is outstanding, and it is a reward for him…"

While the two were talking eloquently on the TV, Li Cuiyun poked her husband: "Hey, do you think our son will play this time?"

"I don't know…" Zhou Jianliang slowly shook his head.

"Oh, you're not confident today?"

"What! Can you predict football matters! Football is round!" Zhou Jianliang argued.

"Then do you hope your son will play?" Li Cuiyun asked.

Zhou Jianliang rolled his eyes at her, but kept his mouth shut and didn't answer.

Of course, he hoped and was willing to believe that his son would play, but he was afraid that once he said it, it would backfire.

So no matter how much he hoped, he couldn't show it.

It was like buying a lottery ticket, once he bought a lottery ticket, as long as he thought about what would happen after winning the lottery, the lottery ticket for this issue would definitely be bought in vain.

Zhou Jianliang was very careful and cautious when it came to his son.