After lifting the Premier League trophy at Amazon Stadium, Leeds United began their title celebrations.
The day after winning the championship, the team held a city-wide victory parade.
This event attracted an even larger crowd of Leeds and Yorkshire fans, setting a new attendance record.
Countless supporters gathered near Elland Road to celebrate Leeds United's successful title defense, creating a spectacular scene.
The victory parade lasted from noon until evening.
That night, Leeds United hosted a grand championship celebration at Amazon Stadium and Elland Road.
The entire venue was packed, with barely any room to move.
Following the spectacular parade and celebration, Leeds United quickly dominated headlines around the world, trending across major social media platforms and enjoying unmatched popularity.
At the same time, the team was actively preparing for the Champions League final.
Although the Premier League ended on May 12, the Champions League final would be played on June 1, leaving a gap of over two weeks.
So, after securing the title, Pochettino announced a rest day to allow players to relax and spend time with their families.
According to the team's schedule, after the break, Leeds United would train for a week at the AXA Centre, followed by another day off.
Finally, they would head north to Dublin for a closed training camp.
The purpose of the closed camp was mainly to avoid outside distractions, enabling the team to focus fully on tactical preparations and training.
After all, the final would be held at Leeds United's own Amazon Stadium. As the match approached, fans and media would flock to the city, inevitably causing disruptions.
Rather than deal with that, it made more sense to go elsewhere and prepare in peace, allowing the squad to relax and focus.
In contrast, Manchester City did not have such a long preparation window.
They had to play the FA Cup final just one week after finishing their league campaign.
However, this also helped them maintain their match rhythm.
Both sides had their own advantages and disadvantages.
City would stay in Manchester to prepare, given its proximity to Leeds. They didn't even plan to arrive early and would instead come on matchday.
Both teams made arrangements they believed would give them the best chance in this highly anticipated Champions League final.
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With the Premier League and other leagues drawing to a close, the European transfer market quietly opened.
The first major news came from Barcelona.
Atletico Madrid star Antoine Griezmann announced that he would leave the club this summer, with his preferred destination being Barcelona.
According to Catalan media reports, Barcelona planned to activate Griezmann's €130 million release clause on July 1, the day the transfer window officially opened, bringing the forward to Camp Nou.
This move sent shockwaves through European football.
Additionally, Barcelona also set their sights on Ajax's young midfielder Frenkie de Jong.
Dutch media reported that Barcelona had entered negotiations with Ajax, though the two sides still had a gap in transfer valuation. Barcelona hoped to land the Dutch midfielder for €75 million, while Ajax demanded €85 million.
Moreover, Barcelona was also targeting Leeds United's young center-back Matthijs de Ligt, whose current market value on Transfermarkt was estimated at €100 million.
It's worth noting that ESPN recently released a ranking of the most valuable players under the age of 21.
In that list, eight of the top ten players had market values exceeding €100 million, an astonishing figure reflecting the rise in player valuations across European football.
Mbappe topped the list by a wide margin, with a market value of €250 million, significantly ahead of second-placed Haaland, who was valued at €150 million.
Third on the list was another Leeds United player, Brazilian prodigy Vinicius Junior, whose market value was an eye-watering €140 million. ESPN noted that if Mbappe were to leave for Real Madrid, Leeds would not need to worry about a left winger, as Vinicius would be the ideal replacement.
ESPN specifically mentioned that Leeds United had spent just €10 million on Vinicius' transfer and development, and in just a few years, his value had increased fourteenfold. The return on investment was staggering.
With Leeds United sweeping the top three in ESPN's list, several other Leeds players also made the top ten: Sancho, De Ligt, Alexander-Arnold, and Rashford. These players were all valued around €100 million, with Alexander-Arnold being the lowest at €95 million.
However, as ESPN pointed out, prying Arnold away from Leeds for that price would be nearly impossible.
Previously, the Liverpool Echo reported that the Reds had made an ambitious attempt to sign both full-backs, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson, for €170 million. But Leeds United rejected the offer outright.
Another standout youngster in the top ten was Kai Havertz, the Bayer Leverkusen midfielder, valued at €100 million.
He had just scored 17 goals in the recently concluded Bundesliga season, a truly impressive achievement.
Matching that tally was Serbian striker Luka Jovic of Eintracht Frankfurt, whose current valuation was €80 million. While some media outlets linked him with Real Madrid, Gao Shen personally denied those rumors in an interview with AS.
Looking at the European football landscape, it's clear that both transfer fees and player salaries are climbing rapidly.
Even young players like Havertz and Jovic are now priced at €80 million or even €100 million, which seems excessive.
But behind these soaring valuations, club revenues have also seen significant growth.
Take the Premier League this season, for example.
Leeds United, after winning the title, earned £150 million in prize money. Liverpool, who finished second, received £149 million, and Manchester City, who placed third, earned £148 million.
Even Huddersfield Town, who finished bottom, received £93.6 million.
Brighton, who narrowly avoided relegation, earned £102 million, while Southampton received £101 million.
This shows how financially powerful every Premier League team has become.
Take Aston Villa as an example. After a two-year absence, they returned to the Premier League and immediately announced a massive £200 million transfer budget to help avoid relegation in the new season.
£200 million!
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While other clubs were kicking off their summer transfer business, Leeds United held a closed training camp, refusing all outside interference.
Gao Shen, meanwhile, got busy on multiple fronts.
First, he traveled south to Spain to meet with Zidane and his team, studying the redevelopment plans for Real Madrid's Valdebebas training complex. At the same time, he began forming a team in Madrid and drawing up plans for Real Madrid's squad in the new season.
After completing his work in Madrid, Gao Shen went north to Paris to attend the groundbreaking ceremony for Paris Saint-Germain's new training base.
The project had involved a top-tier design team from the start, with Gao Shen personally acting as an advisor, offering professional input on the layout and use of the facilities.
In addition, Gao Shen and his team began upgrading PSG's first-team training infrastructure, bringing in new equipment, hiring experts, and implementing strict rules and procedures. Of particular importance were the professional experts Gao Shen recruited.
For instance, Gao Shen successfully poached Gian Nicola Bisciotti, a renowned sports performance expert, from Inter Milan.
This 60-year-old specialist had been with Inter since 1999. He started as a fitness coach and transitioned into sports performance in 2016, forming close ties with top professionals like Buenaventura and Pintus.
Gao Shen hoped Bisciotti would take full charge of PSG's first-team performance management.
The team's new nutritionist was Juan José Morillas, just 38 years old. Though he didn't have a notable playing career, he retired in 2014 and turned to studying sports nutrition. In 2016, he interned at Leeds United and later became their nutrition assistant.
Now, he would take over full responsibility for the dietary management of PSG's first-team players.
His first move was to remove all soft drinks, cola, and iced tea from the training ground cafeteria. He also required all players to have breakfast and lunch together, strictly regulating their diets and meal plans.
The final key appointment was the medical director. Through connections, Gao Shen brought in Christopher Baldot from Lyon. He had known Baldot for years and trusted his experience in Ligue 1.
Baldot began working in Marseille in 2007 before moving to Lyon in 2016, where he had remained ever since.
Gao Shen believed that the addition of Baldot, Bisciotti, and Morillas would significantly improve PSG's current deficiencies and provide stronger support to the first-team staff and players.
At the same time, Gao Shen began reforming PSG's youth development system, particularly the connection between the youth teams and the first team.
He discovered that in recent years, many talented players like Nkunku and Coman had failed to break into the senior squad. If not for his arrival, Nkunku likely would have already left.
Gao Shen believed the barrier between the youth team and first team must be broken down. Each year, around ten young players should be promoted to train with the first team.
However, this required a mature process for scouting, evaluation, and development.
Once that system was in place, it would become a standard practice at PSG.
Gao Shen believed this would help more young players shine in PSG's senior squad.
(To be continued.)