While AC Milan could save money by dragging the deal into the winter transfer window, the pressure on them this summer would only grow—and a winter-window Ronaldo would be ineligible for European competitions.
In other words, AC Milan would be buying only half a Ronaldo for half a season.
So if they really wanted Ronaldo, sooner was definitely better than later.
This transfer instantly injected new life into the struggling Serie A.
Four years after leaving Milan, Ronaldo returned as "Fat Ronaldo."
He left in blue-and-black and returned in red-and-black.
Everything was moving in reverse—including his form.
And with Ronaldo's departure,
there was no longer any doubt about who would own Real Madrid's No. 9 shirt.
Marca: "Real Madrid announces the new season's squad numbers: Su Hang leads with No. 9, Raúl No. 7, Robinho No. 10, Casillas No. 1, Emerson No. 8, Diarra No. 6..."
"Cannavaro receives Zidane's old No. 5."
"Kompany wins Su Hang's former No. 24 in a team rock-paper-scissors match! Modrić finishes second, narrowly losing to Kompany, and chooses No. 23 to honor 'Wheelchair Su'!"
With that, Real Madrid's preparations for the new season were complete.
...
"Ding! The Bale Moment Card has brought you significant gains: your Speed increases by 5 points, and Explosiveness by 3 points."
"You've learned a lot from Bale's playing technique, especially his bicycle kick."
"Bale's bicycle kick is a superstar-level skill. People used to doubt him, but after he soared through the air and scored that overhead kick, they hailed him by his true nickname: the Welsh Dragon."
"Your Jumping has improved."
"Your bicycle kick accuracy has greatly increased."
"Your injury risk during bicycle kicks has been drastically reduced."
Su Hang received the feedback from the Bale Moment Card and began tallying his gains from last season.
Thanks to this card, his Speed rose from 76 to 81.
His Jumping went from 80 to 82.
His Burst soared from 87 to 90.
"Ding! Your Burst attribute has reached 90. Star Path (Explosiveness) unlocked."
"Star Path (Explosiveness): Explosiveness is one of the most important abilities for a player. Speed is objective, measurable, and has a limit."
"Your average dribbling speed this season must rank top three among all players with more than ten appearances across the top five leagues."
"Your Burst cannot increase further until this task is completed. Upon completion, you will earn the Star Path (Explosiveness) reward: Three-Step Burst."
Whoa.
Another Star Path unlocked.
Bale had directly maxed out Su Hang's explosiveness.
Once the Star Path was completed, he could continue to raise the attribute.
And that "Three-Step Burst" sounded ridiculously over the top.
Unfortunately, this Star Path was even harder than the Strength one—it required consistent effort for an entire season.
Thankfully, there was an appearance minimum. Otherwise, guys who play only three to five matches could spike their numbers instantly, and as a starter, no matter how fast you were, you could never compete because you had to manage stamina across full matches and the entire season.
By comparison, completing the Strength Star Path rested mostly on Modrić.
Get him to eat more, train more strength—maybe he could finish it mid-season.
Come on, Mo-Mo!
Modrić: ???
Modrić: I'm a technical player, damn it!
Soon, a wave of rewards rolled in.
"Ding! You led Spain to win the World Cup, setting a new record."
"Gained 2 equipment slots."
"Gained 3 White Medicine Sprays and 5 Black Medicine Sprays."
"Gained attribute point bonuses; all attribute slots unlocked."
"Gained Height +2 cm."
"Gained Moment Card: Franck Ribéry 2007."
Equipment slots were new. Su Hang had previously obtained "Figo's Captain's Armband," but without a slot, he couldn't equip it.
Now that he could, it granted an instant 3% boost to the entire team—extremely powerful.
The sprays were well-timed. These things were genuinely effective—without them, Su Hang might've missed his legendary moment in the World Cup final.
Next season, he should stock up more for Zidane. The man's getting old, brittle bones, injury-prone.
Zidane: Oh, come on!
Zidane: If not for that damn spray, I would've retired right after the World Cup as the King of Football!
The height bonus was downright ridiculous. Su Hang's 1.83m "perfect male-god height" was now obsolete—he would now breathe the sweet air at 1.85m.
Truly, one must worry for those breathing the murky air below 1.60m.
As for Ribéry's Moment Card—2007 wasn't his peak, but it was a pivotal year.
Before that, Ribéry mainly played on the right and performed well enough to start for France.
But upon joining Bayern Munich in 2007, he officially transitioned to the left wing. From there, he thrived, setting the stage for his prime and eventually forming one of football's most iconic wing duos with Robben—"Robbery"!
Finally, the season's attribute points, combined with Su Hang's regular training gains, made his stats panel look increasingly impressive.
Offense
Attacking Awareness: 87+1
Ball Control: 82+1
Dribbling: 82+1
Shooting: 89+1
Long Pass: 82+1
Short Pass: 82+3
Heading: 81+4
Curve: 76+1
Set Pieces: 88
Defense
Defensive Awareness: 72+3
Tackling: 78+2
Interceptions: 72+2
Covering: 71+4
Retreating Defense: 60+3
Clearances: 60+3
Physical
Speed: 81+1
Explosiveness: 90
Strength: 90
Agility: 77+2
Jumping: 82+2
Endurance: 72+3
Foot Strength: 81+2
Other Ratings
Vision: 8
Left Foot: 1 (6)
Right Foot: 8
Discipline: 7+1
Injury Resistance: 4-1
Consistency: 9-1
Su Hang's overall rating rose from last season's 77 (top-five-league level) to 80, officially entering the "star player" tier.
But even this overall rating didn't truly reflect his actual strength.
His scoring system differed from other players—he had an all-round rating, meaning every attribute counted, including defensive ones.
His physical attributes reached 83.2.
His offensive attributes hit 84.25, nearly at elite star level.
The only thing dragging his overall score down was his defensive rating at 71.7.
On the one hand, his defensive stats improved slowly. On the other, he had only just unlocked the last two defensive attributes: "Retreating Defense" and "Clearances," both stuck at 60.
So on paper, his defensive score looked even worse than last season.
But his actual defending had clearly improved.
Among forwards, Su Hang's defensive ability was already outstanding.
He even outperformed some midfielders who weren't defensively inclined.
His tracking back never caused issues—every run was effective.
Only true defensive specialists could surpass him.
And isn't that exactly what Real Madrid is missing?
...
(35 Chapters Ahead)
p@treon com / GhostParser