There is a dream called football

Wenger was nervously waiting for a call from the intermediary in his office, asking about the possibility of Pepe's transfer.

For Wenger, this is very important. There are not many choices for central defenders. Good central defenders have been acquired by the giants of the five major leagues, such as Manchester United's Ferdinand, Chelsea's Carvalho and Terry.

Of course Wenger likes these people, but the possibility of acquisition is zero, and the target must be outside the five major leagues.

When the phone rings, every European head coach has an intermediary he can trust, and Wenger does the same.

"Matthew, how are you?"

"Porto says Pepe is not for sale."

Wenger chuckled and said, "Don't do this to me. Anyone in Porto can sell it. I know it's just a matter of price."

"Haha, Arthur, you are right."

"How about it? Just tell me."

"40 million euros."

Wenger took a deep breath.

"Then the transaction price is almost 35 million."

Based on past experience, the initial quotation is generally exaggerated and requires bargaining. This is also easy to understand.

But this time it's different.

"Arthur, this time is different."

"no the same?"

"Why?"

Wenger didn't understand.

"Arthur, let me tell you straight, there are a lot of people looking at Pepe now, he is very popular, so Porto has no worries about selling."

"I can guess this, but 40 million is too high. He has only been in Europe for two years."

…

"Anyway, the other party's tone is very tough."

Wenger understood that in this case, a team must have already made an offer to Porto, and the price may not be low. Otherwise, ordinary clubs cannot be so arrogant. After all, if they scare away the buyer who made the offer, then

Too bad.

"Can you find out if a club has made an offer to Porto and what the price is?"

"This... I'm afraid it won't work. This is a top secret for any club."

Wenger expressed his understanding.

The next day, Wenger found Li Qiao and asked if Li Qiao had any friends in Porto who could help him.

But I don’t know how to say it. This kind of thing is not the player’s responsibility. It can even be said that Wenger has exceeded his authority.

But on the other hand, these things are unspoken rules. I often hear that someone transferred because of a phone call from someone. Strictly speaking, that is against the rules, but everyone does it. In short, there is nothing in the human world that is illegal.

For sure.

So Wenger told Li Qiao his thoughts.

"Li Qiao, I'm asking for your help, but this is not your responsibility. If you have any concerns, you can tell me."

Li Qiao nodded.

This task is not difficult, because Pepe's transfer to Real Madrid was a big event in the previous life. Li Qiao still remembers the transfer fee, which was about a little more than 30 million, so Li Qiao can tell Wenger this information without actually making a phone call, but

This still needs to be installed.

"Boss, I'm willing to help, but I can't guarantee anything."

Wenger was overjoyed and patted Li Qiao, "Of course, I thank you first."

The next day, Li Qiao found Wenger and told Wenger all the information he could think of about Pepe.

Wenger was surprised and delighted.

"Is this news reliable?"

Li Qiao shrugged.

"I'm not sure, but that's what I got."

Wenger nodded, "If the information is reliable, then you have really helped a lot."

"Happy to oblige."

****

"Sorry, Asher, I used all my connections, but I really can't find out who made the offer for Pepe."

"Thank you first."

"Matthew, I found it through my channels."

The other party was stunned.

"This is impossible, unless you are friends with the boss of Porto. As far as I know, only he may know about this matter."

"You don't have to worry about how I found out."

"Tell me quickly, Arthur. I can fly to Porto and talk to them myself."

Wenger shared the information he had obtained.

With Matthew's professional sensitivity, he thought about it and felt that the news was probably true.

"Arthur, you are really amazing."

"Haha, I'll leave the next step to you."

"I'll give it a try."

After putting down the phone, Wenger could only look forward to it. Of course, he also knew that this was just the first step and there was still a long way to go.

*****

Jorge Pinto.

The boss of Porto, the head of a black shop in Europe, no matter how the outside world teases and ridicules him, he adheres to his business philosophy and has no shame. For him, football is like stocks, sell high and buy low, no need to invest emotions.

.

Just like a good stock investor should not have feelings for his own stock, it is just a tool to make money.

Pinto maintains a good relationship with people in the football circle. On the one hand, he needs informants to purchase goods from South America, and on the other hand, he needs informants to sell them at high prices in Europe.

These were all tacit things, so Pinto was very polite when he met Matthew and deliberately met at a Michelin restaurant.

Pinto began to boast first.

"I can't count the number of clubs interested in Pepe on one hand right now."

"Of course, but I think you will always have to sell him. It doesn't matter where his next home is, what matters is the price."

"You are right, if Arsenal can offer a transfer fee of 40 million, then they can take him away during the winter break."

Matthew was happy, "That's not necessary. Pepe will no longer be able to represent other teams in the Champions League this season. I think the transfer should happen as early as next summer."

Pinto shrugged, "That's okay, you know, we are the most trustworthy in business. We have agreed, then the transfer date can be rescheduled, and we will not sell to others."

"40 million is too high."

"Haha, a club has already offered 45 million. Do you really think 40 million is high?"

Matthew smiled again, "I heard a rumor."

"Tell me about it."

Pinto knew very well that this was just a delaying tactic by the other party and could not really be any definite news.

Because the core information cannot be leaked, a veteran like him is very confident about this.

"Well, as I said, there are indeed many clubs interested in Pepe, but there is only one that really makes an offer, and that is Real Madrid, and it is only over 30 million."

As soon as these words came out, Ping Tuo's face twitched, and then he quickly recovered.

"Am I right?"

"Haha, I don't know where you heard this from. It seems you know more than me."

But Pinto's expression had betrayed him.

Matthew smiled and said: "You know, most of the teams that leak their quotations are not sincere."

Pinto's expression was already very ugly, but he had to cover it up because it was impossible for him to leak the news, so it was very clear.

"Okay, I promise you, I will think about it carefully."