Goodison Park, the Premier League Round 27 match between Everton at home against Arsenal has begun.
Everton is currently ranked 6th in the league, just behind Chelsea and Tottenham, even surpassing Dalglish's Liverpool by 3 points.
They are definitely not a pushover team in this era. Any team that plays against them at Goodison Park will face some pressure.
"Everton! Everton!"
"We are forever!"
The match kicked off at 3:30 PM that day. Arsenal, fresh from winning the EFL Cup, fielded a strong 4-2-4 attacking formation today.
Wenger placed Van Persie and Walcott in the center, with Maël and Gervinho on the flanks.
This is a formation that the team has been practicing frequently in daily tactical training recently, with the aim of exerting dominance in the upcoming Premier League matches.
After having the highly efficient winger Maël, Wenger has been studying how to make the team break through the opponent's goal more easily.
Now the entire Premier League knows that Arsenal has a strong attack, so they pile up players in the backfield to play positional warfare and seek counter-attack opportunities.
If Arsenal forcibly plays positional attacks and confronts the opponent's dense defense head-on, it is definitely not the best choice, and there is a risk of overturning occasionally.
In this case, they might as well field a 4-striker formation, allowing the two center forwards to constantly retreat to the midfield to meet the ball when holding the ball in their own backfield.
In this way, as long as the opponent's two center-backs choose not to mark the two, they will have a numerical advantage of about 8 against 6 in the mid-backcourt.
When the attack advances to the frontcourt, it is also easy to create a balanced 4-on-4 attack. Their frontline players with stronger personal abilities have a high probability of breaking through the opponent's defense.
Once the opponent's center-backs choose to mark Van Persie and Walcott, the gap behind them will be exposed.
At this time, the two wingers will cut diagonally into the gap behind the center-backs like sharp swords, forming a 1-on-1 or 2-on-2 attack with the full-backs who are close to them, and even directly fight for high balls to face the goalkeeper! Maël's Speed and Strength advantages, as well as his ability to beat players 1-on-1 or even 1-on-2, will be brought into play!
Of course, this is just a new attacking idea that has been added. Those tactics that were commonly used before will not be abandoned. Every team must maintain diversification.
"Bang!"
In the 18th minute of the match, Maël successfully cut into the gap left behind the opponent's center-back, and competed with the full-back defending him for a long pass from Kyle Walker.
He stopped the ball with his thigh, and when stopping the ball, he led the ball smoothly in the direction of the attack, without slowing down too much.
The opponent's right-back originally thought that he would unload the ball first and then accelerate, with a pause in the middle, but now he couldn't keep up.
The opportunity has come!
"Crack!"
A sliding tackle came. On Maël's right, a defender rushing at full Speed slid out his foot, his movements crisp and ruthless.
It was the opponent's left-back. He seemed to have been paying attention to this side all the time, and rushed towards him at full Speed from the moment Kyle Walker passed the ball.
"Pa!"
Maël wanted to pick the ball and jump over his sliding tackle, but he was half a step too slow. The ball was still tackled by the opponent and slipped out of the baseline from a position close to the corner flag area.
Fortunately, he jumped up at the last moment, dodged the opponent's tackle, and did not fall to the ground.
"Aha!" Goodison Park erupted in cheers and applause. This was considered a clearance by the last person in the defense, no less than a goal or an assist.
"Yeah!" The full-back raised his fist to the sky after getting up, celebrating with great excitement.
Maël slapped his hand regretfully. He was only one step away from forming a One-on-One. He looked at Gervinho on the other side, "Hey! Hey! Cut forward just now, keep me on the same level!"
Gervinho seemed to feel that he hadn't done well just now, and waved his hand at Maël self-reproachfully.
Maël was not blaming him, but reminded him: "If you come up just now, he will be a little worried and will not come over resolutely at full Speed.
"Moreover, even if he rushes very hard, you can form a One-on-One with a single pass from me.
"It's okay, it's okay! Let's do it again! There are still opportunities. As long as we seize one, we can win!"
He seemed very excited. New month, new atmosphere. He hoped that the team could achieve good results this month, and he himself could break through 30 goals in the league.
"Boom!"
Since Ramsey didn't play, Arteta then took a corner kick on the wing. The Football was taken down by Everton defender Baines, but unfortunately, the clearance hit Van Persie's back.
Van Persie's expression changed, and he made a volley motion to meet the incoming ball without stopping it directly.
"Clang!"
Everyone knew the power behind his shot, and immediately two or three Everton players slid in to block his attempt.
"Thump." Van Persie suddenly stopped his foot, passing the ball to Mertesacker on the right, who was in an open position, originally up to contest the corner.
"Bang!!"
The center-back, upon receiving the ball, didn't bother with any fancy shots. He wound up and unleashed a Heavy Cannon in the Penalty Area with all his might.
The football slammed into the upper corner of the goal, causing the net to bulge violently upwards before finally falling back down a second later.
Goal! One-nil!
A rare goal from Mertesacker! "Yeah!"
Mertesacker, thrilled to have scored, rushed to the sideline and slid on his knees in celebration. Behind him, several Arsenal players joined in, some diving and sliding across the ground on their stomachs.
A chaotic scene!
It wasn't hard to understand their excitement. With all fronts more or less settled, taking the lead with an early goal was a great way to signal their title aspirations.
Plus, it was the second phase of attack from a corner, so almost everyone was upfield. They hoped to boost each other's morale with a collective celebration, encouraging the team to keep pushing forward!
"Mertesacker!"
Alexandre Song, who was diving on the ground, looked back and asked with a big smile, "Do you know what scoring the first goal of March means?"
"Does it mean I'm going to steal the Monthly Best award from Maël and Van Persie?" Mertesacker replied with a laugh. Those two had consistently been the team's best performers, earning the Monthly Best awards every month.
When Maël didn't win the *Premier League Monthly Best, the team would compensate him with an internal Monthly Best* award embroidered with the Arsenal crest.
And when he did win the *Premier League Monthly Best*, that internal award would go to Van Persie.
"No." Maël quickly denied with a smile, but he certainly wouldn't dampen his teammates' enthusiasm at this moment. "It means we'll continue our unbeaten streak this month!"
"Haha...!" All the players laughed together. They then got up, hugged, and high-fived each other, celebrating for a long time near the sideline.
After that goal, they played with a lot more ease, but because the new tactics were still being integrated, they didn't create too many clear chances for a while.
"Thump!"
It wasn't until the 69th minute of the second half that Arsenal, after drawing in five opposing players with their passing in the backfield, broke through the opponent's defense with a long pass from Arteta, creating an opportunity for Maël.
Everton's two center-backs looked a bit overwhelmed. They were already struggling to defend Van Persie and Walcott, and they really couldn't spare any attention to the space behind them.
All they could do was watch the football fly over their heads and pray that the full-back could successfully cover behind them.
"Bang!"
In the forward position, Maël was more decisive this time. Upon reaching the ball's landing point, he nodded it forward, directly towards the opponent's half.
The full-back on the same side surrendered again, outpaced and left behind in just two steps.
The other full-back sprinted over at full Speed, rushing towards the ball's landing point on a diagonal line. His Speed wasn't slow.
However, Arsenal's right winger, Gervinho, had made a forward run, drawing about 30% of the full-back's attention, forcing him to also consider defending Maël's pass.
"Thump-thwack!"
After Maël controlled the ball and landed, he made a gesture with his left foot as if to pass it straight to the right with the instep, immediately scaring the defender into slowing down, ready to lunge for an interception.
But then he quickly pushed the ball forward, charging towards the goalkeeper again.
A feint! The full-back gritted his teeth and tried to accelerate to catch up, but now that he was accelerating parallel to Maël, how could he possibly be faster?
"Thump-thump...!"
After two touches, Maël was already close to the edge of the penalty area. Looking at the opponent's goal and the onrushing goalkeeper, his eyes flashed with intense desire.
He stepped to the left with his left foot, dropping his shoulder, his whole body leaning to the left, then repeated a similar feint on the right side.
But at the moment his right foot touched the ground, the muscles in his right leg suddenly fired, propelling his body to the left.
"Thwack!"
At the same time, his left foot also pushed the ball out a big step to the left, and he quickly followed, completing the change of pace.
Pendulum Dribbling!
The goalkeeper, unsurprisingly, couldn't keep up and sat on the ground in frustration.
"Bang!"
Maël gently pushed the ball with a light shot towards the center of the goal, and before it even went in, he spread his arms and ran towards the sidelines.
28th goal! Consistent performance!
Two to zero! "Aaahhhh!" The shouts of the Arsenal away fans echoed throughout Goodison Park once again, and the team's players rushed over to celebrate with Maël again.
Just like last time, they slid or dove out of the corner flag area, holding a wild party in front of the silent Everton fans.
"Will you break the goal record?" Van Persie came up, his eyes full of envy, but he still smiled and said, "If you can break the Premier League goal record, I can accept winning the silver boot with more than 30 goals."
"Sure."
Maël hugged him, then joked, "Don't think so far ahead, let me get to 30 goals first, and you hurry up too, keep it up!"
"Okay!" Van Persie reached out and high-fived Maël, "The most important thing is that the team can win. As long as we keep winning, everything will be fine."
"That's right." Maël nodded, agreeing with what he said.
"Clap clap clap!"
On the sidelines, Wenger sat on the coaching bench, raising his hands high, applauding the goal with excitement and satisfaction.
This was the first successful attempt after adding a new offensive tactic, and every coach would feel a strong sense of accomplishment at this moment, and deeply remember this goal.
Leading by two goals, he hoped that they could win this game away from home against Everton with minimal cost! "Click click...!" A media reporter on the sidelines captured this scene, and these photos became the cover images for some of the post-match reports.
"Arsenal wins 2-0 against Everton! Points exceed 71! With Manchester United and Manchester City having one game less, the lead has reached 7 points!" - The Times
"6 consecutive wins! Arsenal begins to fully attack the Premier League title! With 22 wins and 5 draws, they are expected to challenge the highest score in history!" - L'Équipe
...
That night, Etihad Stadium.
"Beep! Beep! Beep—!"
As the referee blew three long whistles, Mancini clenched his arms and punched the air a few times on the coaching bench, then pretended to calm down and put his fists in his pockets, elegantly walking to the sidelines for post-match etiquette.
Thanks to Balotelli's two goals, they won 2-0 against Bolton Wanderers at home, taking 3 points! Not falling behind!
"Why alwas me!!"
Balotelli took off his jersey after the game, shouting around the stands while waving his jersey. His Premier League goals this season were also approaching 20, "Why! Say something!!"
At the post-match press conference, Mancini appeared here with Agüero.
It wasn't that he was prejudiced against Balotelli, but the latter was too easy to cause trouble. What if he got excited and took a big dump at the press conference... This guy could pull off pranks like blowing up reporters with firecrackers, and he would blow up his own house one day.
Okay, he was still prejudiced.
"A difference of 4 points."
Mancini raised four fingers at the press conference and said with a confident smile, "The top team has 22 wins and 5 draws, and the team hasn't been widened the gap, so there is a good chance of winning the championship.
"So we are doing very well, and we will bite Arsenal in the final stage, waiting for opportunities."
"Agüero? In the first half of the season, the media has been comparing Maël with you, and you were once ahead of him in the Monthly Best. Why haven't people mentioned you together recently?" A reporter asked a very awkward question.
Agüero laughed awkwardly, considered for a while and wanted to say something, but finally turned away from the microphone and didn't speak.
"Bye bye." Mancini saw that the atmosphere was not right and ended the press conference early.
...
At the same time, White Hart Lane.
"Bang!!"
Ashley Young fired a Long Shot from outside the penalty area, attracting everyone's attention to follow the football.
"Clang!"
"Swish!"
The football first hit the lower edge of the crossbar, rebounded to the ground and hit Tottenham goalkeeper Friedel's face, and then bounced towards the goal.
"Yeah!" The Manchester United away fans at White Hart Lane went completely crazy, dancing wildly in the stands.
"Bang bang bang!"
"Come on!"
Ashley Young roared, pounding his chest, and charged towards the sideline, shaking his head.
Two to one!
A game-winning goal against Tottenham!
"Oh!"
Sir Ferguson, who had been looking grim on the sidelines, was ecstatic after seeing the goal. He jumped up, raised his arms, and exclaimed, "Fuck!"
A golden goal!
A minute later, the referee blew the whistle to end the match, and the entire Manchester United team celebrated wildly on the field.
Ferguson went to the sidelines to shake hands with Redknapp, then strode into the player tunnel and headed to the press conference room.
"The team has managed to maintain its winning streak with difficulty. What will be the focus next?" a reporter asked.
"The league," Ferguson replied simply. It was a boring question.
"Mancini also stated in an interview a few days ago that the team would focus on the league. Is this because both of your teams failed to qualify from the Champions League group stage and can only play in the Europa League?" a reporter asked, trying to provoke him.
"No."
"Okay, the Europa League Round of 16 is about to begin this week. Will this affect your league title contention with Arsenal? Will Arsenal widen the gap even further?"
Ferguson pursed his lips and stared at the reporter with sharp eyes, his displeasure evident.
"I'm being very patient with you," he said, repeating a phrase he often used, hitting back at the reporter.
The room fell silent for a moment before someone stood up to continue questioning: "Someone once asked Sir Ferguson, if you had a bullet, would you shoot Wenger or Victoria? The Sir replied, 'Can I have two?'"
"Now, if we bring up this question again and add Maël as an option, would the Sir want three bullets?"
Ferguson was amused and angered. He didn't expect that after a game-winning victory, the questions would all be about Arsenal.
His expression returned to seriousness, and he leaned back, raising his hands and pretending to hold something, shaking it a few times. "I'd want a Maxim heavy machine gun and kill all of you, including them."
Afraid the reporters wouldn't hear him clearly, he leaned closer to the microphone and repeated it.
"League Table: 1st: Arsenal, 22 wins, 5 draws, 71 points! 2nd: Manchester City, 21 wins, 4 draws, 2 losses, 67 points! 3rd: Manchester United, 20 wins, 5 draws, 2 losses, 65 points!" - Premier League Table, March 8th. The 28th round of the Premier League was upon them, and Arsenal faced Aston Villa in this match.
In this game, Wenger rotated some players in the backfield, but this did not affect the strong attacking power of their four forwards.
Just 16 minutes into the game, Maël received a long-range pass from Rosický and broke through from behind the opponent's defense.
Villa's two full-backs reacted quickly, sandwiching him and looking for an opportunity to tackle and steal the ball.
Maël didn't just accelerate blindly. He was already very close to the penalty area, and at this point, a burst of speed would easily allow the goalkeeper to come out and pick up the ball directly.
He actively slowed down, waiting for the two defenders to rush past him from both sides and come in front of him.
"Tss-pah!"
Before they could directly turn around and get into a defensive posture, he used the inside of his left foot to slide the football inward, then gracefully performed two Bicycle Kicks, shifting his direction to the right and dribbling past a defender.
He's past them! The key to the successful breakthrough wasn't the Bicycle Kick, but his perfect rhythm of changing speed and direction, as well as his body keeping up with the Speed of the Football!
"Boom!!"
Before the other defender could come up, he used the inside of his right foot to curl a shot towards the far corner of the goal.
"Swish!" The Football gracefully slid into the far corner of the net, and Villa's goalkeeper, Given, grabbed a handful of air before falling heavily to the ground.
One to zero!
The 29th goal!!
"Come on ma-ehl! Come on ma-ehl! Come on ma-ehl!"
The Arsenal fans at the scene cheered for him together, the voices echoing through the Emirates Stadium, with a unique rhythm.
Maël excitedly sprinted to the sidelines, stopped, put one hand on his head, and waved the other towards his head, making a salute-like celebration gesture, "Boom!"
However, the meaning was definitely not a salute. It was just to express his wonderful appearance in the celebration area, to express that he would try his best to meet the expectations of the fans, and to salute the cheers of the fans.
He was quickly surrounded by his teammates, and many people reached out to grab his hair, messing up his hairstyle.
Alexandre Song kept staring at Maël from the side, wanting to see if he would look embarrassed in this state.
But when Maël looked up, what he saw was a messy, lazy handsome guy. Not only was he not embarrassed, but he looked even more endearing, making people feel that his looks could handle anything.
He touched his face thoughtfully, and casually ruffled his hair, fantasizing about having the same effect.
Nine minutes later, after Alexandre Song's unremitting efforts, he finally got a chance to shoot at the goal from outside the penalty area.
"*Bang!*"
He used his right foot to unleash a driven shot, blasting the ball into the lower right corner of the goal. He rushed to the sideline and turned around, spreading his hands to everyone.
Two to zero! The seventh consecutive victory was at hand!
Soon someone came up and hugged Alexandre Song, and as he expected, those people began to ruffle his hair.
But when he imitated Maël, slightly raising the corner of his mouth and looking up with a light smile, he found that no one was paying attention to him.
"Clap!" Maël was high-fiving Van Persie, and the other teammates were busy with their own things, either hugging or talking.
Turning his head to look at the fans, every fan was celebrating with their friends and family. Some were looking this way, but not at him, at least not at his face.
Song stood with his hands on his hips, a hint of displeasure in his expression. He didn't understand why he could never imitate it.
His body began to tremble, and his face gradually twisted, which quickly attracted the attention of others.
"What's wrong, Song?" Maël came up and hugged him, asking with concern.
"I..." Song glanced at Maël's face, lowered his head, and his eyes darted around. "I remembered some unhappy things, it's okay."
"Okay." Maël smiled brightly and patted him on the shoulder. "We're about to win our seventh consecutive game. What's there to be unhappy about? Let's work hard together, and the 23rd win is coming."
"Yeah." Song nodded in reply, raised his arm, and ran towards his area.
Maël and the others quickly returned to their positions, preparing for the next stage of the game.
Soon after, the first half ended, and both sides returned to the locker room for halftime rest.
After the second half started, Aston Villa adopted an aggressive high-pressing strategy. Arsenal didn't stubbornly continue to control the ball in the backfield, but chose a simpler and more direct defensive counterattack.
No team doesn't use defensive counterattacks; it just depends on whether they choose this tactic at the start or after taking the lead.
"Tap, tap, tap!"
Maël ran actively in the frontcourt, constantly interspersing behind the opponents, and often retreated to provide passing points for his teammates. He was constantly working towards his 30th goal.
In the 81st minute of the match, Aston Villa seemed to be unable to press anymore, and the movements of players in multiple positions became slow.
Arsenal regained control of the ball and used offense to replace defense.
Two minutes later, Gervinho took advantage of the opponent's lax defense on his side, cut diagonally behind Walcott, and received a long pass from the backfield.
He unloaded the ball and rushed towards the opponent's penalty area, shaking off the side back on the same side and gaining a body advantage of about 3 meters.
"Bang, bang, bang!"
Gervinho dribbled the ball forward all the way, forming a half One-on-One opportunity. The side back on Maël's side had to rush over to help defend him.
He glanced at Maël, and between passing the ball and continuing to break through, he chose the latter.
After Wenger switched to playing with four forwards and regained his starting position, he had not yet proven himself, and this ball was a good opportunity.
"Bang!"
Near the edge of the penalty area, Gervinho took a shot, and the football flew towards the lower left corner of the goal.
Maël was a little disappointed when he saw this scene, but he quickly rushed into the penalty area to wait for a chance to make a follow-up shot.
If this ball had been passed to him just now, he would have been facing the goalkeeper directly, but he didn't ask Gervinho for the ball. He knew that Gervinho might be in a difficult position, so he left it to the other party to choose for himself.
"Clap!" As with the results of countless stubborn actions, Gervinho's shot was blocked by the goalkeeper, and the football bounced back into the penalty area.
Maël had been judging the possible landing position of the football after it was saved, standing near the left side of the small penalty area, but the pitch was changing rapidly, and the ball rolled from his right side to behind him.
He regretfully took a cold breath, and could only blame himself for rushing too hard and too fast, not leaving enough distance for reaction and buffer.
Turning his head, he saw that Rosický might get the ball, so he quickly ran backwards, ran out of the offside area, and maneuvered on the defensive line to prepare to move forward.
"Bang." Rosický passed a diagonal ball, but it wasn't passed very well, and the football kept bouncing.
Maël saw the incoming ball, glanced at the goal, opened his body to the left, and stopped the ball forward with his left foot.
The opportunity has come!
"Bang!!"
As his body caught up, he swung his right arm, folded his left leg, and heavily unleashed a Heavy Cannon in the Penalty Area, sending the ball towards the far corner of the goal.
Feeling the force he exerted, Maël's eyes filled with intense anticipation, and his mood became excited.
He watched the football as it hurtled towards the far post, saw the Arsenal fans behind the net stand up, and saw the opposing goalkeeper, Given, fail to save the football once again.
"Swish!" The football slammed heavily into the side netting, making a crisp sound.
"Aaahhhh!!" A thunderous roar erupted from the Emirates Stadium, soaring into the sky, so loud that one might suspect it could be clearly heard from Highbury Stadium, hundreds of meters away.
"Oh!"
Henry on the sidelines held his head in his hands. His highest goal tally in a single season for Arsenal was only 30.
Maël had actually scored 30 goals in just 28 rounds! A divine striker!
A prodigious star!
"Ma-ehl moment!" Wenger's reaction was similar to Henry's, holding his head with a look of shock and joy. Even if Maël stopped now, he would be etched in Premier League history.
In this league, there are so few strikers who can score 30 goals in a single season! Absolutely top-tier! "Come on ma-ehl!!" The familiar rhythm resounded in the stadium again. The fans knew what achievement their star striker had accomplished. This time, they poured even more emotion into the phrase.
In the spotlight, Maël came to the edge of the field with a triumphant expression, wrapped his arms around himself, and performed Palmer's classic celebration.
His hands swept up and down his arms, as if embracing himself.
He knew very well that with the heat of scoring 30 goals, this celebration would go viral again tomorrow, becoming an object of imitation for many.
After completing the celebration, he turned and waved his right fist towards the sky above the stadium, then clenched both fists and shook them in front of his chest, "Yeah!"
"30 goals!" Van Persie was the first to come over. He grabbed Maël's shoulder, seemingly wanting to see what was so special about him.
"Incredible!"
"The team record has been tied, now it's about surpassing the team record and then challenging the Premier League overall record!"
"Keep going, keep going!"
The other players also placed their hands on Maël, constantly touching him to absorb some of his luck.
"Click, click!" Reporters on the sidelines took photos quickly, but besides the 'embracing himself' celebration, they didn't capture any other good shots.
Thus, the image of Maël with his arms wrapped around himself appeared on various covers after the match.
"30 goals! In Arsenal's three-to-zero victory over Aston Villa, Maël scored a brace, scoring his 30th Premier League goal! This move ties Henry's record at Arsenal!" - Football Record
"The Great's Shock! Henry watches Maël tie his Premier League goal record live, the latter scoring his 38-round goal tally in just 28 rounds!" - Baidu Headlines
"Divine Striker Appears! Maël launches a final assault on the Premier League goal record! The player is expected to break Alan Shearer and Andy Cole's record around the 35th round!" - Daily Mail
"23 wins and 5 draws! With one more game played, Arsenal once again widens the gap with the Manchester duo!" - London Evening Standard
"I must criticize the player, he now completely refuses to pass the ball. He averaged about 1.5 goals per assist in the EFL Championship, but why has he scored 3 goals in 2 rounds this month, where are the assists?!" - Alan Shearer's social media
"I agree with Alan Shearer's statement, Maël's Premier League goal tally should be calculated by multiplying his 15 assists by 1.5, the 30 goals you see now are fake (smirking)." - Andy Cole's social media
"If calculated like that, Alan Shearer and Andy Cole wouldn't even reach double digits for goals in a single season." - Gareth Speed's social media
"Maël's celebration goes viral again, total social media fans approach 45 million! The asking price for a single Twitter ad has exceeded £500,000!" - Marca
...
On March 9th, Maël finished his morning training and prepared to rest for half a day due to physical fatigue.
Another main reason was that Mendes was coming over today to finalize the signing matters and shooting dates for various advertising endorsements.
Seeing that Mendes had not yet arrived, he turned on the TV to watch today's Europa League match.
Due to the Europa League schedule being different from other competitions, Premier League title rivals Manchester City and Manchester United both had 2 Europa League Round of 16 matches this month.
Therefore, they only had 4 Premier League matches scheduled this month, one less than Arsenal.
When Maël turned on the TV, Manchester City's match against Sporting CP was nearing its end, with Manchester City trailing two-nil away from home.
"It's hanging by a thread."
Looking at Mancini's disappointed eyes and the fatigue of the Manchester City players, he had a hunch. Being shut out by the opponent away from home would greatly damage Manchester City's confidence in this competition.
The second leg is at home, but it might still be difficult to come back. Mancini might try a semi-main lineup again, but he'll save his strength for the Premier League.
"Bip! Bip! Bip—!"
After this match, he went to watch Manchester United's away game against Athletic Bilbao, which was about to enter halftime.
Similar to Manchester City's situation, Manchester United was also down 0-2, and it was 0-2 at halftime.
The expressions on the players' faces were clearly off, and the game was gradually spiraling out of control.
In the 67th minute of the second half, Rooney stirred up trouble, and the players from both sides engaged in a brawl in the midfield, resulting in Rooney being sent off with a red card.
Athletic Bilbao then scored two more goals in succession. Fortunately, Valencia helped them score a goal in the final moments, preventing them from being shut out by Bilbao.
"Ding-dong." The doorbell rang, and Safina, who was standing near the door playing with her phone, opened it. "You're here, Mr. Mendes."
"Mm." Mendes walked in from the door, the weather was warming up, and he had put his suit back on.
Maël saw him and couldn't help but smile. "How is it, Mr. Mendes? Already 30 goals, soon to surpass another player under your management for the highest number of goals in the Premier League."
Mendes could tell that Maël was teasing him, and he smiled helplessly, waving his hand as he sat down on the sofa.
He took out a stack of documents from his bag and handed them to Maël. "You might be busy next, but I guarantee that your assets will definitely double."
Mendes picked up an orange from the table, peeled it, and said with a refreshed smile, "There are countless brands looking for you to endorse them, some even made the bizarre request of signing both you and Cristiano at the same time to shoot commercials together."
"I refused, but thanks to some brands with whom I had already established a relationship during Cristiano's endorsement negotiations."
"They can indeed offer high prices and are trustworthy partners. Your endorsements will have some overlap with his."
"But don't worry, you two won't be shooting commercials together. I'll prevent that kind of awkward situation from happening."
In fact, Maël and Ronaldo hadn't met yet, and they had never had any face-to-face communication, only responding to each other from afar during the Golden Boy Award promotion. In theory, their relationship wasn't bad.
But because Maël had already shown the potential of a superstar and the competitiveness to contend for the best, there would definitely be some awkwardness if they met.
"You currently have a total of 3 endorsements, with a total endorsement fee of £2.85 million: Puma for 3+2 years at £1.5 million, Lay's Chips for 2 years at £1.4 million, and Tsingtao Beer for 3 years."
Mendes took out a pen and paper to help Maël calculate. "Plus, you received a £2 million Puma bonus, so your previous endorsement income totals £7.75 million."
"After deducting taxes and other miscellaneous expenses, you'll have around £4 million in hand."
Mendes showed a delighted expression, smiling and saying, "And this time, the money you can get is £7 million, and that's after tax."
"£7 million?" Maël put down the documents, no longer in the mood to read them. "That much?"
"Yes."
Mendes was happy to see Maël's expression. "I accepted endorsement offers from 4 companies: Pepsi, the clothing brand Pepe Jeans, Procter & Gamble's Olay, and Louis Vuitton."
"They all accepted 2-3 year offers, and we have the right to choose the specific term."
"The endorsement fees are £2.4 million, £2 million, £1.6 million, and £2.2 million respectively."
"Why are the prices different?" Maël asked. A smile also appeared on his face. Unknowingly, he was already a player with a £2 million endorsement fee per year.
This reminded him of his first 'endorsement,' which was only £4,000 and required him to sign 100 autographs.
It had increased 500 times in just over a year! But this comparison was meaningless. At least he enjoyed it at the time and remembered Kodall, that lovely old man.
"Cola is extremely popular in the Americas, especially in countries like Mexico. Some people there can't live without this drink."
Mendes explained to Maël, "And the Americas are the home of Football. They have always been committed to finding excellent Football players to endorse them and are willing to pay a high price."
"Pepe is a British clothing company, and you play in the Premier League, so they want to try it out with £2 million."
"As for Olay, it's a women's skincare brand, and they're only using you as an experiment, so they're afraid to offer too high a price."
"Louis Vuitton is a big brand, and it's a French brand. They're optimistic about your performance in the European Cup representing the French Team this June and are willing to pay a price of £2 million."
Maël nodded, understanding more or less. "That adds up to £8.2 million, and I'll get about £4 million after tax, right? The rest is all Twitter and Facebook ads?"
Mendes raised his eyebrows and nodded, pointing at Maël, indicating that he guessed correctly. "Advertising is always more lucrative than endorsements, but I was waiting for your championship and 30+ goals, so I kept holding back.
"This time, the advertising fee has increased to £500,000, and I accepted 11 at once, which amounts to a total income of £5.5 million."
"Overall, I've brought in contracts worth £13.7 million this time, and you'll get nearly £7 million."
"This is so awesome." Maël leaned back and sighed, never imagining that he could make money like this one day.
He had checked his bank balance some time ago, and counting his salary since the raise, signing fee, Puma bonuses, and club bonuses, etc., he already had over £9 million in his bank account.
Adding this £7 million, that's £16 million, and if he can get some more bonuses at the end of the season, he'll likely break £20 million directly!
He had already started receiving wealth management calls from various banks, but he hadn't paid them any attention yet.
"And..."
Mendes chuckled again, as if he had another ace up his sleeve, "Besides the Procter & Gamble contract, the other three all have special bonus clauses.
"Pepe Jeans has a £500,000 bonus for winning the Premier League, and both Pepsi and Louis Vuitton have a £500,000 Premier League title bonus, as well as tiered bonuses for reaching the top four, final, and winning the European Cup.
"I negotiated it to be £200,000, £500,000, and £1.5 million respectively.
"The European Cup Golden Boot and Best Player of the Tournament can be multiplied by 1.5 on top of that, and if you get both, it can be multiplied twice."
Afraid that Maël would ask again, Mendes explained in advance, "Don't be disappointed that Procter & Gamble doesn't have a bonus. As long as this experiment works well and opens up the market for you among female fans, there will be bonuses in the future."
He glanced at Maël's face and smiled enviously, "I have confidence in you. I think calling you the next Beckham is an understatement.
"If you keep playing like this, achieve some important accomplishments, and establish a persona of being both handsome and capable, you might quickly catch up with Beckham and have the potential to surpass his international influence.
"Someone once did an experiment to find out who in the world doesn't know Beckham, and they finally found a shepherd in a minority area who had never used electronic products in his life.
"I think in a few more years, if you want to find someone who doesn't know you, you'll have to go to Antarctica to find penguins."
"Haha...!" The two laughed together, their faces full of joy.
Maël didn't know what to say anymore, just kept nodding and talking about other things, "The contract term is 2-3 years. Does Mr. Mendes want to see if I'm confident in myself?
"If not, sign for 3 years to ensure you get the money for 3 years; if so, sign for 2 years and then talk about renewing the contract."
"Exactly." Mendes smiled and patted Maël on the shoulder. This kind of rapport was very precious.
Maël didn't hesitate and confirmed directly, "2 years, I'm very confident in myself."
"I knew you'd choose that." Mendes' smile was even brighter, "Then we're in agreement on this point. Finally, let's talk about the shooting dates.
"When the ads are released, I'll remind you to post one every 3 days, but the ad shoots for the four major sponsors may require you to take the time yourself, preparing for 3-5 days for each company."
Maël nodded, came to the schedule and looked at it, "How about arranging 2 companies this month and shooting the other 2 next month?"
He felt a little tricky, a little overwhelmed. Maybe this is what fame is like. It's hard to imagine how busy and exciting life would be every day if he became an international superstar in the future.
But one thing was certain, he wouldn't let these things affect his training and matches like Beckham did.
As the saying goes, cherish your feathers and don't forget where you got everything, otherwise you'll suffer sooner or later.
Moreover, this was far from his limit. He hadn't even reached Beckham's level of fame yet, so how could he compare with Messi and Ronaldo, who dominated football for 10 years? Even if he was like Messi and Ronaldo, it still wouldn't be the ultimate form of his playing career. He would become an unprecedented athlete.
Whether it's on-field performance, off-field fame, personal wealth, or various influences, etc.! This road of climbing step by step, although difficult, is still as fascinating as it was in the beginning.
"Okay." Mendes agreed and asked after remembering something, "You should have enough money to buy a team now, right? How about it, should I help you pick one? Or do you want to buy this house first?"
He was just joking, but he didn't expect Maël to reply, "Help me pick one. If I have free time at the end of the season, it would be nice to buy a team and run it.
"At the current rate of earning money, I can buy this house in less than half a season, so there's no rush."
"Are you serious?" Mendes looked at Maël and confirmed.
"Yes." Maël nodded, and then put the matter out of his mind. He was still immersed in the joy just now.
After a long time, he asked, "Is it convenient to ask a personal question? How much money does Cristiano currently earn a year through endorsements and advertisements?"
Mendes stared into Maël's eyes, his expression changed, and finally said, "A little more than twice as much as you. He's also preparing to launch a personal brand CR7, selling perfumes, T-shirts, shoes, etc."
"Personal brand?"
Maël was stunned. He knew the CR7 brand, but after signing with Puma, he realized an important issue, "Doesn't he have a non-compete agreement with Nike? Why is it in my contract?"
"He originally did." Mendes raised his eyebrows and spread his hands, "But when he renewed his contract later, he asked Nike to modify the agreement, only signing with direct competitors such as Adidas and Puma, and not restricting individuals."
"I see."
Maël suddenly understood and said, "In other words, as long as I play with super strong dominance and influence, and with my own value, I can also modify this point in the contract and create a personal brand?"
"You can say that." Mendes nodded, and saw a strong desire in Maël's eyes again.
Wait, his pupils suddenly shrank, Football Record, the idea of buying a team, a personal brand, could he be planning something big?
"There's one more thing." Mendes felt a surge of shock in his heart, realizing he couldn't quite grasp Maël's thoughts anymore, so he had to bring up something else first. "Someone from Facebook contacted me, and they've proposed a compromise.
"They want to exchange your Instagram shares for Facebook stock at an 85% acquisition price."
Maël considered it for a moment, recalling Facebook's later market value, and asked, "What's Facebook's current market value?"
"100 billion US dollars," Mendes answered, "It fluctuates around that figure."
Maël was swayed. He remembered Facebook's peak market value being over a trillion US dollars. "This is acceptable, but is 85% a bit too low?
"Don't reply to them yet, Mr. Mendes. Let them contact me, and I'll try to negotiate a higher price."
"Alright," Mendes agreed, feeling tired after talking for so long. He stood up and stretched. "Get ready to be busy for a while. Things that have been piling up for more than half a season are all going to explode now.
"It's mainly because you're performing well and constantly improving. Other players don't usually encounter this.
"Okay, I'm about to leave. In the final stage of the Premier League title race, strive for an undefeated championship. You must give it your all.
"If you win the double and achieve good results in the European Cup, next year, you'll be a player of a new caliber.
"The advertising contract agency has already signed contracts for you. I'll send them to you later. As for the endorsement contracts, we'll sign them when you shoot the commercials."
"Okay, Mr. Mendes, don't worry about me. I know what I need to do." Maël stood up to see Mr. Mendes off, knowing that the other party's constant running around couldn't be easy.
He accompanied him to the road outside his house and only turned back home after Mendes' driver arrived.
Everything continued to move forward in an orderly manner. Next, while competing for honors on the field, he had to find time to shoot commercials and sign all the contracts, developing on two fronts and advancing side by side! Monthly update of 523,000 words
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