Real Madrid wouldn't dare keep a homegrown forward of the same age as Su Hang.
Otherwise, how could Su Hang truly dominate the team?
Having a supposed successor the same age—or even older—wouldn't that feel awkward?
Besides, Su Hang is only nineteen. Choosing his heir should wait until he's at least twenty-five, right?
By putting their trust in Su Hang, Real Madrid naturally wouldn't put obstacles in his path.
Defensive midfielder Celades, recalled in last season's winter window, and Sánchez, who had long been stuck on the bench behind Casillas, both ended up joining Zaragoza.
After this round of cuts, the squad suddenly became leaner than ever.
Even with Luxemburgo's Brazilian clique, the numbers were still modest.
Considering their spending this summer, it was... very un-Real Madrid.
Their total outlay was far below that of previous years.
Most importantly, no superstar arrived this season!
Last year, Florentino's "Zidane + Pavón" policy collapsed.
This year, his "One Galáctico a Year" strategy also crumbled.
For those paying attention, this was a serious red flag.
Florentino's finances had finally hit the breaking point.
Under his leadership, Real Madrid had relied on loans year after year. Despite strong commercial revenue, poor results on the pitch caused heavy losses.
On top of that came political defeats suffered by his backers, weakening Florentino's grip on the club.
All in all, this was Real Madrid's most difficult summer since the Galácticos era began.
Up front, the logjam was finally gone:
Ronaldo, Raúl, Su Hang, Soldado.
Just four strikers.
In midfield: Zidane, Figo, Beckham, Baptista, Guti, Robinho, García, Gravesen.
Spread across attacking midfield, central midfield, defensive midfield, and the wings, it was far from a deep roster.
In defense: Roberto Carlos, Helguera, Woodgate, Salgado, Ramos, Pavón, Raúl Bravo, Cicinho, Diogo.
Enough for a strong starting eleven, but depth beyond that was shaky.
And many of these players had limited potential.
Take Pavón and Raúl Bravo, for example.
Others were little more than lottery tickets.
In goal: Casillas, López, and Codina—all young, around twenty-two or twenty-three.
...
In August, Real Madrid's players gradually returned to camp.
The first to arrive, naturally, was Su Hang, expected to set the tone for the season.
He had trained diligently and scientifically all summer.
Over the past year, his attributes had improved significantly.
Still, he had already received some rewards from last season.
Perhaps it was because he had been named in the Champions League Team of the Season.
Liverpool, who eliminated Real Madrid, went on to stage the Miracle of Istanbul and lift the Champions League trophy.
Their captain, Gerrard, once praised Su Hang in an interview, saying that if Su Hang had been on Madrid's side, Liverpool might not have beaten them.
At the time, Su Hang thought Gerrard was just being polite.
But Gerrard meant every word. At season's end, the system unexpectedly granted Su Hang a superstar skill.
"Gerrard's Heavy Cannon: Superstar Skill. Many midfielders excel at long-range shots, especially in England—Lampard, Scholes, and Gerrard among them."
"Your shot power, finishing, and Offensive Awareness have improved."
"Your long shots gain a 'Ball Speed Bonus,' making them harder to block or deflect."
"Your long shots have a chance to trigger the 'Sudden Drop' effect."
On top of that, a Makélélé Moment Card appeared as a gift, unlocking Su Hang's stamina attribute and granting him the skill 'Interception.'
"Interception: Player Skill. Your ability to cut off passes is enhanced, allowing you to better anticipate opponents' passing routes."
His stats now stood as follows:
Offensive Awareness: 82
Ball Control: 76
Shooting: 80
Long Passing: 74
Short Passing: 78
Heading: 81
Set Pieces: 81
Tackling: 76
Interception: 70
Acceleration: 80
Strength: 88
Jumping: 79
Stamina: 71
Shot Power: 74
Vision: 8
Overall: 77
In just a year and a half, his rating had jumped from 58 to 77—good enough for Europe's top leagues.
He had skipped straight past academy level, professional level, and second-division level.
In other words...
Su Hang could now play long stretches without dragging the team down.
And compared with players at his level, his Offensive Awareness, finishing, heading, set pieces, acceleration, strength, and jumping all gave him an edge.
His strength in particular—an impressive 88—was a clear advantage.
These were exactly the areas he had focused on this summer.
So while Su Hang wasn't a muscle-bound brute, among current forwards he was one of the strongest in physical duels.
He wasn't far off from the so-called "beast forwards" who thrived on raw power.
Of course, this rating still didn't stand out within Real Madrid.
Most of their attackers had ratings above 90, with several exceeding 95.
Even in midfield and defense, the regular starters were in the 80s—stars or even elite stars.
Only a handful of youngsters and backups like Raúl Bravo, Pavón, Soldado, Diogo, López, and Codina fell below 80.
From that perspective, Su Hang was still near the bottom of the squad.
But reaching the team's minimum standard was already a huge step forward.
Su Hang was very satisfied.
After all, he had abilities others at his level simply didn't.
His vision.
His superstar skills.
His Moment Card.
...
From the next day, more players began appearing on the training ground.
By August 5th, the full squad had assembled.
During the pre-season physicals, Su Hang's numbers gave everyone a surprise.
His body fat was just 7%!
That proved he hadn't taken a single day off all summer.
Many players couldn't reach that level of leanness even if they trained nonstop.
Most professionals hovered around 10%.
In the bench press test, Su Hang went head-to-head with Baptista.
The two outperformed all their teammates.
Eventually, Su Hang gave in, admitting he had reached his limit.
From this, Su Hang concluded that Baptista truly deserved his nickname, "The Beast"—his strength attribute was probably over 90.
Yet Baptista didn't consider himself the winner.
He had seen footage of Su Hang fighting and knew he couldn't match that.
Su Hang was likely the strongest player in La Liga right now.
This made Baptista admire him deeply.
Perhaps Su Hang had only pretended to lose, to spare Baptista embarrassment.
Was this the aura of a true captain?
No wonder Roberto Carlos regarded Su Hang with such caution.
...
(35 Chapters Ahead)
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