Super Wingstorm

”Hello, Mino.”

As soon as the call connected, Van Gaal forced a smile as he offered his greeting, though he was cursing inwardly.

If it weren’t for work, he really wouldn’t be willing to deal with a vampire like Raiola. Not even once.

”Hello, who is this?” Raiola’s lazy voice came from the other end of the line.

”This is Louis.”

”Louis? Which Louis?”

Van Gaal’s eyes widened. ’Is he playing dumb? How could he not know which Louis I am?’

But the Ajax technical director suppressed his temper and replied, ”Louis van Gaal.”

”Oh, Mr. Van Gaal, I never expected it to be you. What a surprise!” Raiola said in a tone of utter shock.

Van Gaal, listening on the phone, had the urge to vomit. ’God knows what expression that fat Italian has on his face right now.’

”Alright, enough with the pleasantries. Where are you right now?”

”Me? I’m in Monaco.”

”Monaco?” Van Gaal was a little surprised.

”Yes, I’ve always lived in Monaco. The famous Monte Carlo F1 circuit is right near my house. You can watch the F1 cars directly from my roof. You must come and see it sometime,” the fat Italian explained with relish.

But Van Gaal had no interest in that. His greatest passion in life was football, followed by golf.

”We’ll talk about that when we have time. I want to ask, when are you free to make a trip to Amsterdam?”

”Oh, is something the matter?” Raiola asked, feigning confusion.

Van Gaal almost swore out loud. ’Something the matter? Of course something’s the matter! Why the hell would I be calling you otherwise? He’s just playing dumb.’

”After careful consideration, we feel that we should finalize Yang Yang’s contract renewal as soon as possible. What do you think?”

”Of course. I wanted to get this all sorted out in one go a few days ago. Since you’ve decided now, I’m at your service anytime,” Raiola replied without hesitation.

On his end of the line, Van Gaal was stunned. ’He agreed so readily? Is this really the style of the vampire Raiola?’

He couldn’t help but feel that something was wrong.

Sure enough, before he could speak, Raiola’s voice came through the line again.

The Italian clicked his tongue twice and let out a long sigh. ”But the next few days are definitely not going to work. I have some family matters to attend to, so I might be busy for a few days. Plus, there are some urgent things in Italy that I need to rush over and handle. After that, I might have to go to...”

Van Gaal stopped listening to what he was saying. He was finally sure: the vampire’s brain was working just fine.

”Just tell me when you’re free,” Van Gaal replied coolly.

”In a few days. I’ll definitely be free in a few days. I’ll be sure to come find you in Amsterdam then, and we can have a good talk,” Raiola said with a chuckle.

As the saying goes, you don’t hit a smiling face. Raiola was all smiles and apologies, which made it very difficult for Van Gaal to lose his temper.

Setting aside their opposing positions, he had to admit, Raiola was a bastard you couldn’t bring yourself to hate.

After hanging up, Van Gaal turned back to look at the match on the field through the window. Yang Yang was still running tirelessly.

Three to one. Ajax had basically secured victory.

Suddenly, Van Gaal realized this contract renewal wouldn’t be so easy.

The 3000 euros weekly salary Raiola had proposed for the renewal was probably just a test. What the vampire really wanted was to probe Ajax’s bottom line regarding Yang Yang. He wanted to secure the greatest possible benefits for his player.

Yang Yang wanted to stay with the team, there was no doubt about that. Raiola had also never used other clubs to hype up Yang Yang’s renewal, which was enough to show their sincerity. But as Yang Yang’s performance got better and better, the leverage in the renewal negotiations would increasingly shift to the player’s side. Ajax would have to keep sweetening the pot.

”That fat bastard is as cunning as a fox!” Van Gaal cursed through gritted teeth.

...

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Ajax ultimately defeated Eindhoven three to one at home.

Victory in this clash of titans allowed Ajax to finally secure their position as the league leaders, at least for now.

After the match, the fifty thousand fans in the stadium rose in unison to give the players on the field a thunderous round of applause.

After this round of matches, Ajax was four points ahead of Eindhoven in the league table, giving them a certain advantage in the title race. But with fourteen rounds left until the end of the season, anything could still happen.

In the post-match press conference, Head Coach Ronald Koeman once again singled out the young substitute Yang Yang for praise, saying his performance was incredible and that both of his assists showed astonishing skill.

”Watching him play, it’s hard for anyone to believe he just turned seventeen. He’s an amazing player. When you work with him, you discover that he’s always the hardest-working and most diligent person. His progress is incredibly fast, so fast that it’s unbelievable.”

But Ronald Koeman also mentioned that Yang Yang was still too young and needed to continue to grow and improve.

”For now, he’s not yet perfect. He should maintain this hard work and drive, as well as his passion during matches. Most importantly, he needs to keep growing and improving, to make himself stronger, even more perfect.”

Ronald Koeman also mentioned some other players on the team, such as Sneijder. The Dutch midfielder’s performance for Ajax this season has been brilliant, in no way overshadowed by his teammate Van der Vaart, especially his passing and playmaking.

But the player the Ajax head coach particularly highlighted was Wesley Sonck.

The Belgian striker came to Ajax with the title of Belgian First Division A’s Top Scorer. He’s skilled with both feet, has a keen instinct in front of the goal, is fast, and has excellent individual ability. This made everyone at Ajax full of high expectations for him.

However, after joining the team, his performance was unsatisfying for a time. The coaching staff constantly tried him out on the right wing, in the center, and on the left wing. But for a while now, he has been mostly fixed on the left, and his performance has been getting better and better.

Some media outlets even pointed out that the period where Wesley Sonck was scoring frequently coincided with Yang Yang coming on as a substitute on the right wing in every match. After Yang Yang started performing well, the one who benefited most clearly was Wesley Sonck.

Ronald Koeman didn’t give a definitive answer. He joked that Vermaelen was also a huge beneficiary, because he scored a goal in his first-team debut, and the Belgian is also Yang Yang’s roommate.

But the Ajax head coach also admitted that once the wings came alive, the team’s frontline offense would get more opportunities.

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After the hard-fought victory over Eindhoven, everyone at Ajax couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief amidst their excitement.

After all, they were the biggest rival in the race for the league title.

But the season wasn’t over yet. The team still had to compete on three fronts: the Eredivisie, the Dutch Cup, and the Champions League. No one dared to be the least bit careless, especially when they thought about their upcoming Champions League knockout stage opponent at the end of the month, Arsenal. Everyone felt a heavy pressure, as if a great mountain was weighing on their backs.

This Premier League team had yet to suffer a defeat in the Premier League so far, a clear testament to their strength.

Yang Yang performed brilliantly in every match, was a good deal younger than everyone else, and was also low-key. He was extremely hardworking in both matches and training, yet was very friendly and kind when dealing with others. This made him easily one of the most popular people in the locker room.

But when he finished showering in the locker room, chatted and laughed with his teammates for a bit, and headed out, he only saw Maxwell and Vermaelen, not the Swedish Striker Ibrahimovic.

”Where’s Zlatan?” Yang Yang asked, finding it strange.

”Said he had something to do and left early,” Vermaelen said, jutting his chin.

Yang Yang found it odd. Lately, they had always been catching a ride in Ibrahimovic’s Porsche, and the Swedish Striker would always wait for them. Why did he leave by himself tonight?

This wasn’t like the Swede. He was always the one who loved a lively atmosphere the most.

”Ride with me,” Maxwell suggested with a smile.

Maxwell’s car was also a sedan provided by Ajax’s sponsor, Fiat, and it was in the De Toekomst parking lot.

”Did something happen?” On the way back to Oude Kerk, Yang Yang couldn’t help but ask Maxwell, who was driving in the front seat.

”I don’t know either.” The Brazilian left-back shook his head. ”He’s always like this, has a few bad days every month.”

”Did he get into a fight with Helena?” Yang Yang asked.

”Doesn’t seem like it.” Vermaelen shook his head. ”He was just talking to me about Helena last night. It didn’t sound like they’d fought.”

”Then what’s the problem?” Yang Yang frowned, completely baffled. ”Could it be because of his performance recently?”

Speaking of Ibrahimovic’s performance lately, it really hadn’t been ideal. Even though he scored a goal in the Dutch Cup match against Feyenoord, the media still criticized him, believing he had missed too many scoring opportunities.

And after the Feyenoord match, Ibrahimovic was rotated out for one game. In this match against Eindhoven, he also missed quite a few chances. The team scored three goals, and he didn’t contribute to any of them. In contrast, veteran Litmanen and his frontline teammate Sonck both scored.

”That’s possible.” Maxwell nodded. ”Raiola has been contacting Serie A teams for him, but since the winter break training camp, his performance has been a bit lackluster. He’s probably having some issues with his form and getting anxious about it himself.”

Yang Yang felt helpless. He really wanted to help Ibrahimovic, but on some matters, his hands were tied.

Take this last match, for instance. Before he assisted Litmanen, he glanced at Ibrahimovic, who had already run past the ideal spot. If he had passed the ball to the Swedish Striker then, it definitely would have been intercepted by the opposing center-back. Even if he managed to receive the ball, it would have been very difficult to create a shooting opportunity.

As for the second assist to Wesley Sonck, that was a fast counter-attack. The Swedish Striker’s speed couldn’t keep up with Yang Yang and Sonck. Yang Yang couldn’t possibly ignore Sonck in front of an open goal and deliberately stop to wait for Ibrahimovic, could he?

Of course, the Swedish Striker probably wouldn’t blame him. He was just sulking because of his own poor performance.

’I’m sure that after a day or two, once he’s calmed down, he’ll be fine.’