Heading to Bremen

"Luiz, are you crazy? Giving him a bonus ten times larger would practically put him on the level of a first-team substitute!"

After Lin Quan left, Subizarreta angrily questioned Enrique.

Enrique, however, did not mind at all and said with a smile,

"Mr. Subizarreta, please do not get so worked up. Lin plays as a defensive midfielder for the youth team, not a forward. It is not easy for players in that position to score goals.

Although his numbers for the team last year were fairly impressive, those were only youth-team matches.

Once he reaches a high-level league like the Bundesliga, he will not even be guaranteed playing time, so naturally he will not produce any dazzling statistics.

Besides, Werder Bremen is a team in decline. Their financial situation is deeply worrying, and their star players have been leaving one after another.

They have no competitiveness in the Bundesliga at all and can barely win many matches in a season.

That way, without enough goals and assists, there will not be many win bonuses either. Most of those bonuses will have nothing to do with him. Even if we offer a little more, what does it matter?"

After hearing Enrique's words, Subizarreta calmed down as well.

"So you drew him a very appealing pie that he is destined never to eat?"

Enrique smiled smugly.

"Heh, that is not necessarily true. If he really does put in phenomenal performances, then naturally he can claim those bonuses. So it all depends on whether he has that kind of ability!"

"Haha, do you believe that yourself?"

Subizarreta had once been a professional player too. He did not believe that a youngster under seventeen could lead a declining team to any great results.

Even Messi had not possessed that kind of ability at that age, much less some ordinary player.

Those words might fool an innocent child, but they were nowhere near enough to fool an old hand like him.

Enrique nodded. "Lin is too young. He probably does not understand just how brutal professional football can be!"

The two men had used their own professional experience to scheme against a young prospect. If word got out, they would probably be despised.

But having completed the task assigned by the club president, they immediately felt a great weight lifted from their shoulders.

Enrique then suggested,

"How about we go out and unwind after work today? I know a few nice places..."

After signing the loan contract, Lin Quan went to say goodbye to several friends from the youth team.

Deulofeu was somewhat reluctant to see his friend leave, but when he learned that Lin Quan had been loaned to a Bundesliga club, he also felt a little envious.

"Damn it, why has no club taken an interest in me? Am I not good enough?"

He had represented the first team several times already, so his reputation should have been greater than Lin Quan's.

Yet Lin Quan had been sent out on loan while no one cared about him. Deulofeu could not make sense of it.

"Gerrard, if you really want to go out on loan, you can apply to the club. I am sure they will let you leave!"

Barca was very willing to let young players who could not get minutes in the first team go elsewhere to gain experience.

Moreover, Deulofeu was a highly rated prospect at Barca. If he applied voluntarily, there was no way Barca would refuse.

"N-no, forget it. I still want to stay. Wearing the red and blue shirt and playing for Barca has always been my dream..."

After hearing Lin Quan say that, Deulofeu hesitated again.

It was clear that he was merely talking. In truth, he did not want to leave Barca, even if he had no place in the squad for the moment.

Lin Quan shook his head helplessly. Barca had plenty of options on the wings.

Messi, Sanchez, Pedro, along with Villa, who could fill in as a winger. For the young Deulofeu to take their places was almost impossible.

The season was already nearing its end, while preseason training for the new season generally began in July.

Therefore, Lin Quan had plenty of time to prepare.

"I am a little worried about you going to Germany alone."

During dinner, Sera spoke with concern.

"I heard the weather in Germany is very cold, and their eating habits are completely different from ours. I am worried you will not be used to living there or eating there. And you are going to play adult football at such a young age. I am afraid you might get injured..."

After saying that, Sera cast Guardiola a slightly reproachful glance, as though blaming him for deciding to send Lin Quan out on loan without discussing it with her first.

When a son traveled far, his mother worried. This was Lin Quan's first journey far from home, and he was going to a foreign country thousands of miles away.

It made his adoptive mother deeply concerned.

Guardiola coughed awkwardly. In truth, this had not been his decision; Lin Quan himself had asked for it.

"I know some people in Germany as well. I will speak to them and have them look after Lin Quan, so do not worry!"

After Guardiola announced his resignation from Barca, countless clubs had invited him to coach them.

Among them were quite a few Bundesliga teams, including even Bayern Munich, the dominant force in the Bundesliga.

That was precisely why he knew many executives at Bundesliga clubs.

As long as he asked, those people would be more than willing to do him this favor.

Sera, who had known Guardiola for so many years, did not doubt his connections in the slightest.

Hearing him say this, she relaxed a little, though she was still not entirely reassured.

"Can those people be trusted? What if they promise to help but do not actually put any effort into it?"

Uh... Guardiola did not know how to respond to that.

He did not dare guarantee that those people would definitely keep their promises seriously.

Seeing the worried look on his beloved's face, Guardiola could only continue,

"How about this? After the season ends, we will go to Germany together, help Lin Quan get everything arranged there, and say hello to Werder Bremen's senior management while we are at it. We can ask them to take better care of him. How does that sound?"

At last, a satisfied smile appeared on Sera's face at Guardiola's arrangement.

"Now that is more like it. Lin, what do you think of Pep's plan?"

Lin Quan nodded repeatedly. With Guardiola personally stepping in, what else could he say?

The moment Guardiola's eldest daughter, eleven-year-old Maria, heard they were going to Germany, her eyes lit up. She immediately clamored about going skiing in the Alps.

The ski resorts in the Alps were among Europe's finest skiing destinations.

Going there in summer to escape the heat and enjoy a vacation was an excellent choice.

Thus, the family eagerly began planning their trip to Germany.

Twenty days later, Barca defeated Athletic Bilbao 3-0 at Calderon Stadium with goals from Pedro and Messi, winning the King's Cup.

It was Guardiola's fourteenth trophy as Barca's manager, and also his last.

After the season ended, while media outlets around the world were speculating over which team Guardiola would coach next season, the whole family quietly boarded a plane and arrived in Bremen, a city in northwestern Germany.