"What? That is impossible?"
After the UEFA Coaches Summit, Gao Shen had dinner with several familiar coaches.
Most of those present were old friends, such as Ferguson, Wenger, Ancelotti, Guardiola, Mourinho, Sarri, Allegri, Pochettino, and Klopp.
This has become a big circle in European football.
The core of the circle is sophistication.
This dinner was arranged because Ferguson and Wenger invited Gao Shen, and Gao Shen happened to have an appointment with Guardiola and others. In addition, a group of Italians including Ancelotti, Sarri, and Allegri also planned to dine together, so they all gathered.
Gao Shen paid for this dinner at a hotel in Nyon.
When a group of football coaches get together, they naturally talk about football-related topics.
The latest topic was of course a continuation of the afternoon's discussion, namely player transfers and salaries.
In European professional football, many people were saying that Barcelona actually paid far more than 57 million euros to sign Neymar.
Gao Shen held up the index finger of his right hand.
Everyone was shocked.
"Do not make a fuss. I am underestimating it. According to current information, it is at least this number, and it may even reach 150. No one knows the exact figure," Gao Shen said with a smile.
Everyone looked at Guardiola in surprise.
Guardiola was no longer Barcelona's head coach, and Martino could not fit into their circle. Guardiola knew Barcelona best, but even he could not get detailed information.
"I do not know the exact number, but what Gao said is similar to what I know, and it is much higher than the public figures."
Guardiola is cautious by nature, and since he said so, he must be right.
Everyone was surprised again.
"Not only that, his salary is also very high. According to preliminary estimates, it is probably similar to Iniesta and Xavi after their renewals, and slightly lower than Messi," Gao Shen added.
Many were surprised, though there were exceptions, such as Mourinho.
"I heard some of these rumors long ago. The word inside Real Madrid then was that Barcelona had secretly tied up Neymar through unknown channels, so Real Madrid announced they were giving up."
"When you think about it, it is outrageous," Wenger said, shaking his head.
He had been coaching Arsenal for many years and had always been frugal. Looking at the current environment, he felt something was off no matter how he looked at it.
Neymar is certainly a genius, but is a genius who has never truly proved himself in European football worth so much money?
"Times have changed, Professor," Gao Shen said with a smile.
"In the past, people did not have this awareness, but now young players often receive all kinds of information very early, including from their families, so they form an early understanding that professional football is a job, and the purpose is to make money."
"For many top stars, forget sentimentality. That is over 100 million euros. Have any of us here earned more than that in our lifetimes?"
Everyone fell silent.
Who would not agree?
Who would be sentimental in the face of such profits?
Everyone has their own values. Just because you do not want something does not mean others cannot.
Besides, someone like Neymar, joining Barcelona from Santos, making a lot of money and winning honors. He is definitely Brazil's future number one and very likely to win the Ballon d'Or after Messi and Ronaldo. Who has the right to say there is something wrong with his and his family's plan?
"You know what? This past summer, the Rothschild family in the City of London contacted me at least three times. They were potential buyers interested in Leeds United, and the offers were quite good."
Everyone looked at Gao Shen in surprise, as they had never heard this.
"As far as I know, sovereign funds from places like Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Dubai, as well as several large financial groups from the United States and elsewhere, and even from China, are very interested in European football."
"They have judged that the economy will remain sluggish, but they believe Europe's top leagues are a good safe haven."
"Imagine that in the next few years there will be more and more teams like Monaco and Paris Saint-Germain. By then, player values will go higher and higher, and salaries will go higher and higher. Even Neymar's transfer, which we think is outrageous now, may seem like nothing in the future."
In fact, if Neymar had not later gone to Paris Saint-Germain with an astonishing buyout fee, his move to Barcelona would really be nothing compared to the subsequent transfers that often exceeded 100 million.
After all, Neymar's potential and talent are obvious.
But Gao Shen changed the subject. "But for those of us in the industry, it does not matter. If player values go up, the salaries of top coaches will go up too, and you will all get rich."
Everyone laughed at Gao Shen's words, except Ferguson.
"Why did you not say this earlier?"
Everyone laughed again.
"I did it on purpose," Gao Shen said confidently.
He did not believe Ferguson could not see it.
Even if he did not see it fully, at least the overall trend was clear.
"That is why you chose to buy Leeds United and invest in youth development," Wenger understood.
Gao Shen nodded. "It is not entirely for making money. I actually have some ideas of my own."
Everyone knew each other well and had been acquainted for many years, so they were not afraid to be candid.
"Actually, I just wanted to try to see if I could run a successful club in a different way."
"That is real success," Ancelotti could not help laughing. "You made 100 million euros last year and another 300 million this summer. You bought Leeds United for 50 million back then, and now you have made 400 million in the transfer market alone."
Everyone was shocked when they heard it.
Leeds United's ability to generate revenue was indeed strong.
The key was that the team had many young players emerging.
Now, after selling one batch, a new batch had emerged.
"I think the young talents at Leeds United are like leeks in a field. Once you cut one, another grows back soon."
Ferguson's description made everyone burst into laughter.
But amid the laughter, there was still admiration.
Look at Gao Shen, he is definitely a winner in life.
He is a good coach and a good club operator, but he cannot play football.
"Hey, Gao, sometimes I think if I had met you in your teens, maybe I would have signed you and developed you, because I think you might have been a football genius," Ferguson joked.
Everyone laughed.
"Then wait. My son is a genius, Zidane said so."
"Is that true?"
"Really? Sign him to us first?"
"No, no, sign him to me first. If nothing else, he is Gao Shen's son. The name alone is worth signing."
"We can talk about that later. Why would Gao Shen send his son to our club? Because he could not coach him well himself."
"Haha, that is right. I am telling you, Gao Jue really cannot handle his son. He will not even let him hold him."
"Is it really that outrageous?"
Everyone immediately looked at Gao Shen with a grin.
"Bullshit," Gao Shen shot back with just two words.
Everyone fell over laughing again.
…
The meal lasted several hours, and everyone returned to their hotels at midnight.
Outside, they are all world-class coaches, each a household name, but in fact each carries heavy pressure to deliver results.
The club has invested hundreds of millions, and all the pressure falls on them. Who can relax?
It is rare to be able to chat, joke, and laugh together like this.
This is actually a misunderstanding among many fans. They always think head coaches do not get along privately, but that is not true.
For example, Ferguson and Wenger have a good private relationship. Mourinho and Ancelotti also spar verbally, but their relationship is quite good. When they were in Italy, they often played cards together.
At most, the relationship between Guardiola and Mourinho is a little worse, but not too bad. They just do not want to engage with each other. It is more a personality issue.
Gao Shen is very eloquent and can get along with anyone, so naturally he has friends everywhere.
In the words of Ferguson and others, they just gave Gao Shen a good beating.
But for Gao Shen, this was nothing.
The UEFA Elite Coaches Summit lasted two days, but everyone arrived late on the second day, and some did not even attend.
For example, Gao Shen flew directly to London after waking up.
Pochettino did the same, flying to London with Gao Shen.
At this time, Su Qing was already waiting in London with Fernando Lucas and Rodolfo Borrell to report the latest progress to Gao Shen. The main projects were the construction progress of the training base and the new stadium plan.
But the most important thing at the moment was attracting investment.
To put it simply, if the title sponsorship could be secured in advance, it would bring huge income to the team.
There was also progress on Norman Foster's side.
Unlike the training base design, the Elland Road land design is not just the stadium, but also includes commercial areas and parking lots. The stadium occupies less than half of the area.
The entire design work is very complicated and is expected to take at least a year.
During this process, repeated communication and negotiation are required. The design team must fully understand the client's requirements, report the latest progress, make timely changes, and adjust direction.
Norman Foster's team has extensive experience in this area.
This time, Foster assembled the best design team in his company.
As he announced previously in Leeds, he truly wants to use this project to make up for regrets over Wembley Stadium, Camp Nou, and other projects, and do his best to create a landmark building.
Therefore, the time and energy invested are naturally extraordinary.
As for Leeds United, Gao Shen is more concerned about attracting investment.
As for the team's performance, he had already discussed it with Pochettino in Nyon and believed there would be no major problems.
(To be continued.)