Chapter 147 Dialogue of a Chinese Family

"Yeah, Dad, I can't come home this summer again… I want to, too, but the coach has designed a special training plan for me. For the sake of the Champions League next season, I have to accept the training, so…"

Zhou Yi was on the phone with his family in his room, telling them about head coach Klopp's decision.

Zhou Yi sounded frustrated about not being able to go home, but his father comforted him on the other end of the phone.

"This is a good thing, it shows that the head coach values you enough. How many people want such an opportunity but can't get it! Don't worry about things at home, just train hard over there. Your career is the most important thing. I'm still waiting to see your performance in the Champions League!"

As a fan, his father didn't seem to regret that his son couldn't come home. When he mentioned the Champions League next season, he even sounded a bit excited.

His wife, Li Cuiyun, who was next to him, glared at her husband and pushed him aside. She spoke into the speakerphone, "Your dad is right, don't worry about things at home, you can't do anything about it anyway. Just train hard over there, but be careful and stay safe."

"Hey, Mom. How about you guys come to Europe to see me…" Zhou Yi came up with an idea. He really missed his parents and home. After all, he had come out at the age of seventeen and hadn't seen his family for a year and a half.

"Go to Europe? Oh, that's a good idea…" Zhou Jianliang, who was leaning in to listen, had the idea of a "deep European football tour" in his head when he heard his son's words, and he was immediately a little tempted.

But Li Cuiyun poked him with her elbow and said, "Nonsense, your dad and I have to work."

"I can take annual leave, and you have it too…" Zhou Jianliang was unwilling.

Li Cuiyun glared at him and said to her son, "Besides, going to Europe costs a lot of money."

"I'll pay for it, Mom. I have nowhere to spend my money now!"

"Just give it all to us if you have nowhere to spend it! Besides, is it easy to make money? Does having money mean you can spend it recklessly?" Li Cuiyun didn't budge.

"Seeing our son can't be considered reckless spending…" Zhou Jianliang muttered unwillingly beside her, but he didn't dare to come closer, for fear of being pinched by his wife.

"Besides, if your dad and I come to Germany, we won't be able to communicate in the language and we won't be able to go anywhere except stay at home. If we want to go out, you have to accompany us, wouldn't that affect your training and waste your time? Your coach has already asked you to use your vacation time for training, it must mean that the training tasks are very heavy, so don't create more trouble for yourself."

Hearing Li Cuiyun say this, Zhou Jianliang realized it, and he quickly shouted next to her, "Yes, yes, yes! Son, your mom is right. We're just adding to your troubles if we come. If you really want us to go to Europe for fun, wait until you really have a vacation!"

As soon as he heard that it would delay his son's training, the thought of a "deep European football tour" disappeared from Zhou Jianliang's mind. Compared to his son's future, what was personal enjoyment?

Seeing that his parents' attitudes were consistent and very firm, Zhou Yi had no choice.

"Okay, then I'll come back during the winter break next season…" Zhou Yi had no choice but to say.

"Okay… hey, no!" Zhou Jianliang suddenly reacted.

"What? The winter break won't work either?" Zhou Yi exclaimed.

Li Cuiyun also looked at her husband strangely. Did he really not want to see his son? Her attitude just now was just a way to suppress her inner thoughts when she had no choice.

"Son, do you want to participate in the Asian Cup?" Zhou Jianliang asked, leaning closer to the phone.

"If I can, of course I want to." Zhou Yi also had aspirations for national team matches.

"So, the Bundesliga winter break next season is when the Qatar Asian Cup is." Zhou Jianliang said.

Zhou Yi, who was holding the phone, was stunned. How did everything get squeezed together!

"Damn it!" He blurted out an exclamation of frustration.

"Ahem, watch your language, watch your language!" Zhou Jianliang quickly reminded his son.

In short, through a warm exchange, Zhou Yi's parents learned that Zhou Yi would not be able to come home this vacation again. They told him not to worry about things at home, and instructed him to train hard while he was away.

It was a typical Chinese family conversation.

Parents never want their children to worry too much about themselves and their families, and they always pretend to be strong. In fact, not only are children not good at expressing their feelings to their parents, but parents may not be good at directly expressing their feelings to their children either…

After hanging up the phone, Li Cuiyun sighed softly and stared at the phone in a daze.

Seeing his wife like this, Zhou Jianliang grumbled and complained, "I told you to go to Europe and you wouldn't go. If you miss your son, just go see him. Transportation is so convenient now, it's not a hassle to go to Europe once…"

Li Cuiyun glared at her husband and said, "Go for what? To cause him trouble? We can't communicate in the language, we can't even leave the house when we go to Germany!"

"Hey, weren't you just making excuses?" Zhou Jianliang asked strangely.

Li Cuiyun rolled her eyes at him, "Do you think I'm stupid? Don't I know which is more important?"

Faced with his wife's question, Zhou Jianliang could only scratch his head and chuckle foolishly.

***

Zhou Yi came out after making the phone call, and Hanna also came out of her room. After seeing Zhou Yi, she congratulated him, "Congratulations on completing a beautiful season, Zhou Yi! Now you can finally go home! Ah, I'm so envious, but our damn school hasn't started vacation yet…"

Zhou Yi spread his hands, "Thank you, Hanna. But I still can't go home."

"Huh? Why?" Hanna was very surprised.

Kottana, who was originally reading a book, also looked up at Zhou Yi.

"The head coach has arranged a new training assignment for me, so I have to stay and continue training," Zhou Yi explained.

Hanna's eyes widened, "Training during vacation time?"

Zhou Yi nodded, "Yes."

"Uh… but you don't have to accept the coach's arrangement. Vacation is your private time, and legally you have the right to refuse the coach's proposal, after all, taking a vacation is your right…" Hanna frowned.

"I know, Hanna. But I think I do need to further improve my abilities." Zhou Yi's mood seemed very calm. "I still have great weaknesses in terms of physical fitness and strength."

When Zhou Yi said this, Hanna was speechless. Because she also watched Dortmund's games, she was naturally very clear about Zhou Yi's actual performance in the games. As Zhou Yi's roommate, she was also annoyed that Zhou Yi always had to be substituted early. He could obviously play for a little longer, and maybe he could bring more goals and assists.

You know, the last five minutes before the end of the game is when goals are most likely to occur…

So Zhou Yi not being able to persist until the end of the game really would miss too many opportunities.

"But… don't you miss home?" After a long while, Hanna asked.

"Of course, I do. But there's no way around it." Zhou Yi shrugged, answering casually. "To achieve a little success, you always have to pay some price, right?"

"Okay… then I wish you success, Zhou Yi. If you put in so much effort and still can't succeed, then this world definitely needs to be destroyed, haha!" Hanna laughed loudly.

Kottana next to her rolled her eyes at her, "Then this world has been destroyed many times, Hanna."

Zhou Yi also laughed, "I thank you for your kind words, Hanna."

***

On the day after Dortmund's game against Freiburg, Dortmund and Real Madrid simultaneously announced Shaheen's transfer.

Real Madrid announced that they had signed Turkish midfielder Nuri Sahin from Borussia Dortmund, with both sides signing a six-year contract, but the specific annual salary and transfer fee were not disclosed.

Some media with great powers said that the transfer fee was estimated to be around 15 million euros, and Sahin's annual salary was 2.5 million euros.

In Real Madrid, which is full of superstars, this annual salary figure is very low.

Sahin's annual salary at Borussia Dortmund was 1.5 million euros after tax. When he renewed his contract with Borussia Dortmund, he asked for at least double that, which was 3 million euros after tax.

However, Borussia Dortmund did not meet his requirements. His choice to transfer to Real Madrid was also 500,000 less than the salary he asked for from Borussia Dortmund.

But Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund are different. In order to be able to go to Real Madrid, the player himself is willing to lower his salary requirements.

Real Madrid's brand appeal is much higher than Borussia Dortmund's.

It was also at this time that everyone finally learned about the results of Sahin's contract renewal negotiations with Borussia Dortmund—he did not stay at Borussia Dortmund, but chose to leave.

At the same time, Sahin also published a letter to the Borussia Dortmund fans through the media.

In the letter, he thanked the Borussia Dortmund fans for their support, and he never forgot this kindness in his most difficult times. He also thanked German football for the opportunities it gave him, which changed his life.

"...I am very happy to come to Germany. The team gave me the opportunity to play in the Bundesliga, which is the place where I have dreamed of playing football since I was a child..."

He also talked about renewing his contract with Borussia Dortmund.

"I hope to stay at Borussia Dortmund, but some things will never be transferred according to your wishes... I and the club have done everything we can. I am very sorry that we were not able to successfully renew the contract in the end."

Finally, the topic was drawn to Real Madrid.

"...I am willing to stay at Borussia Dortmund to play football, and I also thank Borussia Dortmund for everything it has given me. But Real Madrid's call is a special opportunity that I cannot refuse."

Sahin's departure was a major personnel shock for Borussia Dortmund, which attracted widespread attention from the media and fans.

Some people were concerned about what happened in the process of Sahin's transfer to Real Madrid. They criticized Borussia Dortmund's management for being too stingy and unable to keep even a promising core player like Sahin.

Others criticized Sahin for being ungrateful and only thinking about going to a wealthy family, disregarding the interests of Borussia Dortmund. He hurt the hearts of Borussia Dortmund fans.

Some people criticized Sahin's agent Fazeli for playing a role in fueling the flames behind the scenes. He only acted for the sake of commission, but ignored the interests of the club and the players...

Of course, there were also people who took a longer-term view.

Since Sahin's transfer was a done deal, and the person was leaving, it was impossible to keep him, it would be better to talk about the more realistic and more urgent issue than discussing whether Sahin could not leave, or why Sahin would leave.

After Sahin leaves, who can be Sahin's successor?

Zhou Yi?

At present, Zhou Yi does have a great opportunity, but his physical fitness is also a shortcoming. When Sahin was around, his early substitution may not have had a big impact on the team. But now, as the team's only core, if he is still like this, the team's tactics will be difficult to implement.

Therefore, letting Zhou Yi replace Sahin and completely become the team's trusted core is not so easy in the eyes of some people.