After defeating Manchester United, Liverpool were granted an eight-day break.
Klopp was generous, giving all players three days off, then holding an open training session on August 25, inviting loyal Liverpool fans to watch at the club's training base.
This kind of open session was the first policy Mike introduced after taking up his role at Liverpool. He stipulated that the first team must hold at least two open training sessions each season and invite fans to attend.
That was also one of the main reasons for Liverpool supporters' exceptional loyalty.
August 25, Liverpool Training Base, Pitch A.
Fans streamed in one after another, quickly packing the training ground to the point where it was almost overflowing.
Naturally, Klopp wasn't about to reveal any tactical secrets during an open session. It was mainly about interacting with the fans.
As a result, the atmosphere on the pitch was relaxed and upbeat. Players split into 8v8 and 6v6 groups for small-sided games.
Fans went wild, filming their favorite stars on their phones, cheers constantly erupting from the sidelines. From a popularity standpoint, the most sought-after figures were naturally captain Henderson and the attacking "Red Arrow" trio up front.
But quite a few fans were also calling out to Leo Lin, asking for autographs and photos.
One white-haired elderly man, dignified in appearance and giving Leo Lin the impression of a slimmer version of Barnett, stood by the half of the pitch where Leo Lin was training, repeatedly saying,
"Lin."
"Could you give me an autograph? My daughter is your fan."
After Leo Lin stepped over to sign, the old man immediately followed up,
"Lin, another autograph please. My second daughter is your fan too."
"Lin, one more autograph. My wife is also your fan."
"Lin…"
It was like every aunt and distant relative had suddenly come out of the woodwork. By the time Leo Lin finished, he realized he'd already signed seven or eight autographs for the same person.
That made him start to wonder whether the man was a local scalper, tricking him into signing autographs just to resell them.
And that wasn't all. Leo Lin could also feel several intense gazes burning into him. Standing next to the white-haired man were a few tall, blonde, blue-eyed women in tight professional outfits, all staring straight at him without blinking.
Those scorching looks felt like they could burst into flames, making Leo Lin distinctly uncomfortable.
The open training session lasted a full hour, with the players largely satisfying the fans' requests.
After signing for the blonde women as well, Leo Lin followed the main group as they left. Liverpool then continued preparations for the third round of the Premier League.
And another major event awaited Leo Lin—his language improvement academy was finally starting.
August 28 was registration day. When Leo Lin and Ocho arrived at the school gates, they realized that compared to everyone else holding textbooks and various documents, the two of them, completely empty-handed, looked more like PE students who would secretly play cards in their desks during class.
"You've already taken half a year of language classes here, and you still don't know what to bring for the next course?" Leo Lin said helplessly, looking at Ocho.
Ocho gave him a reassuring smile.
"Relax. We're footballers. Special status."
"And special status naturally means special treatment."
Leo Lin wasn't entirely convinced. He still felt there was a real possibility they'd get kicked straight back out of the school gates.
"Our class is a special Liverpool program—youth academy players from both the men's and women's teams. I heard the teacher is really beautiful."
"But the original teacher quit, so I don't know much about this new one."
"They say she's very strict though. Even though she's good-looking, not many players want to study under her."
Hearing this, the knot in Leo Lin's stomach finally snapped.
Even though he considered himself a good, diligent student, strict teachers still made him nervous.
As they chatted their way up to the third floor, the classroom just around the corner, Ocho was brimming with confidence and about to turn when a thunderclap of a voice exploded!
An extremely sharp female voice—though if you listened carefully, you could tell it probably belonged to a beauty.
"First day of registration and you show up empty-handed? No books, no team documents—just walk in with nothing?!"
"And you're one of my students?!"
"Give me your parents' phone number and your youth coach's number. Call them right now and have everything delivered immediately!"
Leo Lin froze on the spot and jabbed Ocho in the side.
"Bro, I think we can still run."
Ocho, however, forced himself forward.
"Relax, bro. With me here, nothing will go wrong."
Even Ocho wasn't confident inside, but he couldn't bring himself to back down in front of Leo Lin, so he gritted his teeth and walked in.
Once inside the classroom, the blonde, blue-eyed homeroom teacher stared at Ocho, glanced at his empty hands, and instantly understood.
"Ocho!!!"
"Don't think being a senior youth academy player means you get special treatment!"
"Call the academy staff right now and have them bring your things over!"
Trailing behind him, Leo Lin was already thinking about turning around and escaping. But when the teacher lifted her head and looked at Leo Lin, her expression changed instantly.
"Lin?"
"You didn't bring your things either?"
Leo Lin nodded.
The homeroom teacher immediately waved him inside and had him take a seat.
"That's fine. Just bring them next class."
"And don't learn too much from Ocho. He'll lead you astray."
Her voice was incredibly gentle. Leo Lin even wondered for a moment if he was hallucinating.
Was this really the same person whose voice had just echoed down the entire hallway like an iron-fisted boss?
Ocho felt completely wronged. What did she mean, "learn from me"?
If it came to shamelessness, he wasn't even one-thousandth as bad as Leo Lin.
Ocho's seat was right next to Leo Lin. After sitting down, he whispered,
"Most of the students in this class are kids from influential or wealthy families. A lot of them have been Liverpool fans since they were little."
"And many of the teachers and staff here are Liverpool supporters too."
Leo Lin suddenly looked up. Only then did he remember—this blonde, blue-eyed woman was one of the people who had stood beside him during the open training session a few days ago, watching him train and later asking for his autograph.
Once everyone had arrived, the homeroom teacher turned on the projector, displaying the principal's portrait.
"This is our principal. Say hello when you see him on campus, be polite—and when you're up to no good, remember to stay out of his sight."
Leo Lin was completely petrified.
"What the hell…"
"Isn't this the old man who tricked me into signing autographs with all kinds of excuses?"
The first day was just a simple orientation. Students introduced themselves one by one, and when it was Leo Lin's turn, countless burning gazes immediately locked onto him.
Especially the female players from Liverpool's youth academy—most of them over eighteen, including two twenty-year-old new first-team signings. The way they stared at Leo Lin made it feel like they wanted to devour him alive.
After the school activities ended, on the way back to the training base, Ocho grinned and patted Leo Lin on the shoulder.
"We don't have many classes. It's mostly about getting used to communicating in local English."
"I think you'll quickly become the biggest star at this academy."
Ocho wiggled his eyebrows meaningfully.
Leo Lin smiled.
"The biggest star at this school?"
"I'd rather be the biggest star in the entire football world."
The two looked at each other and burst out laughing.