Puyol stood outside the door, listening but not entering.
Aragonés' voice carried through from inside. "Puyol, as Barça's captain, is technically one of the candidates. But Casillas has far more appearances than he does."
"Skipping over Casillas would only deepen divisions within the national team."
"So, from Real Madrid's standpoint, Su Hang is the best option. But the Barcelona camp won't take that easily. After all, Su Hang's only been called up once, and in those two matches, he barely played."
The assistant spoke up. "Honestly, I'm not too worried about Puyol. No matter how you rank the options, he's never at the top."
"And if things do blow up, the public will definitely side against him. Real Madrid just won the Treble—they have all the momentum right now."
"Their players could be named captain or even head coach, and they'd still have countless supporters."
"What I'm worried about," the assistant continued, "is if Puyol goes along with this, maybe even agrees to our plan of giving the armband to Su Hang—and then deliberately stirs up tension between Casillas and Su Hang."
Aragonés frowned. "Casillas and Su Hang have issues? I haven't heard anything."
The assistant smirked. "Maybe not officially, but come on—how could they not? Raúl passed over Casillas to give the captain's armband at Real Madrid to Su Hang. If the national team does the same, wouldn't Casillas resent both of them? Of course he would."
"If Puyol plays it right, he won't face any criticism. He can just sit back and watch the chaos."
"In the best-case scenario, Raúl, Casillas, and Su Hang completely fall out. The situation becomes unmanageable, and to stabilize the team, you'll have no choice but to hand the captaincy to Puyol. He'd walk away the biggest winner."
"At worst, Casillas swallows his pride, Su Hang becomes captain, and Puyol successfully plants a thorn in Real Madrid's side. Next season... Barcelona might finally get their shot!"
"Or maybe Su Hang, seeing Casillas' hostility, decides to give him the armband—but the resentment between them will still linger."
Aragonés nodded repeatedly. "That's a good point. I've heard there might be major changes coming at Real Madrid. If Casillas and Su Hang really clash, next season could be Barcelona's best chance to challenge Su Hang's leadership."
Assistant: "Major changes? What kind?"
Aragonés shook his head. "I can't say specifics, but next season could be Barça's moment of vengeance. Anyway, go check downstairs—has Puyol arrived yet?"
"When Puyol, Raúl, Casillas, Salgado, and Albelda get here, send them all to my office. I'll…"
Puyol quickly turned back toward the stairs, pretending he was still on his way up.
"Oh! Carles, you're here," the assistant said, feigning surprise.
"Yes, I heard you were looking for me?" Puyol replied, acting innocent as he walked toward the office.
The assistant followed, a faint grin tugging at his lips.
Yeah, right.
If it weren't to give you time to sneak back to the stairs, would Aragonés really have gone on talking after asking, "Has Puyol arrived yet?" He almost listed the entire squad.
"Coach, you wanted to see me?" Puyol pushed open the door.
Aragonés greeted him with a broad smile before his expression turned serious. He then explained the captaincy situation, carefully leaving out a few sensitive parts.
To his surprise, Puyol nodded without hesitation. "Coach, I'll fully obey your decision."
Aragonés blinked in disbelief. "Really? Puyol, your generosity is frightening! Your heart is as vast as the sea!"
Puyol pounded his chest with his right fist. "Everything for the Spanish national team!"
Aragonés mirrored the gesture. "Switzerland, beware!"
Switzerland: ???
...
After Puyol left, the assistant said quietly, "Puyol's definitely going to stir things up. At the very least, he'll provoke Casillas."
"Aren't you worried that the Real Madrid camp might actually fall apart?"
"Su Hang's only nineteen. Casillas will never truly accept him. Especially since Casillas himself was a young prodigy—he naturally feels he deserves more."
Aragonés shook his head. "I don't know how it'll turn out."
"But if Raúl is willing to give up the captain's armband, then it's worth the risk."
"Raúl's decline started after 2002. By 2004, his form and playstyle had become a burden on the national team. We had better players for his position who couldn't even get on the pitch."
"This season, Raúl's been mostly a rotation player for Real Madrid, with much less playing time. I can still name him in the squad, but ideally, I wouldn't want him starting."
"And what about next year? Or the year after that?"
"It's hard to take the captaincy away from Spain's El Capitán directly."
"But taking it from Raúl the player? That's a lot easier. Especially now that we have another rising Real Madrid forward."
"Redirecting public support is easier than letting it vanish."
The assistant hesitated. "But do you really trust Su Hang that much? What if he can't handle Casillas, or Puyol, or the rest of the squad?"
"Or what if he becomes too powerful to control? He's not even twenty yet. If he becomes both Real Madrid's and Spain's captain, what's left that he can't do?"
"He could end up ruling the entire dressing room, ruling Real Madrid, ruling the Spanish national team—for five, ten, even fifteen years."
"I've heard he's already meddling in Real Madrid's tactics, lineups, and rotations this season."
"There are even rumors that Simon owes him a favor, which is why he indulges Su Hang so much. Real Madrid's practically become his personal domain."
"Zidane, Figo, Beckham—they all reportedly have to watch his mood before doing anything."
"And Carlos—he's one of the fiercest players out there! Yet they say he trembles just hearing Su Hang's voice, gasping for air!"
Roberto Carlos: Who the hell leaked that story!!!
Aragonés chuckled. "If Su Hang lacked ability, players like Casillas and Salgado wouldn't truly respect him. Even if they had to follow him at the club, they'd make their move in the national team the moment they could."
"That's why I'm giving Casillas a chance."
"If Su Hang lacks virtue, then with so much power in his hands, his arrogance will destroy him within two years at most. That's why I'm giving him authority."
"If Su Hang lacks courage, he won't dare take on this burden—he'll hand the armband back to Raúl. That's why I'm giving Raúl the burden."
"If Su Hang lacks wisdom, he'll lose control of the situation, make mistake after mistake, and offend more than one person. Even if he loses his starting spot, no one will blame me as head coach."
"That's why I'm giving myself an opportunity."
...
Aragonés had coached Torres before and admired him greatly.
But given the current situation, Spain's starting striker pairing would inevitably come from Su Hang, Villa, and Raúl.
Torres wouldn't just be a substitute—he might even be the backup to the substitutes.
If he could, Aragonés would have preferred a Villa–Torres partnership up front.
Part of it was sentiment; part of it was his tactical philosophy.
Su Hang didn't fully fit the mold of Aragonés' ideal striker.
He had set Spain up in a 4-3-1-2 formation—similar to Real Madrid's structure in the latter half of the season, but with very different demands on the forwards.
Aragonés wouldn't deny Su Hang's talent. Without a doubt, Su Hang would be included in every matchday squad.
But Su Hang… wasn't Aragonés' ideal type.